A Trick of the Mind
by Gwendolyn Rogan
Summary: As usual, Sheppard and Co. get trapped on the wrong side of the Stargate, this time by natives who have kept the Wraith at bay for nearly a millennia. Can Sheppard discover their secret and escape with his life at the same time? Reaching way back to S.01
1. Chapter 1

A Trick of the Mind

_Chapter One_

The familiar alarm of an incoming wormhole startled Dr. Elizabeth Weir out of her Ancient-datastream induced comatose. Shaking her head as she leaned on her desk in order to stand, she walked out of her office and took the gangway in three long strides.

"It's Major Sheppard's IDC, ma'am," the technician said, glancing at the woman. Elizabeth simply nodded to him, her mind still a little foggy. Stepping up to the railing, Elizabeth closed her arms over her chest and watched as Rodney McKay and Teyla came sprinting through the Stargate. They were followed quickly by Lieutenant Ford who backed into the Gate room while sending bullets back through the event horizon.

"Where's John?" Elizabeth yelled above the gun fire. Rodney, who was leaning on his knees while catching his breath held up a finger, signaling her to wait. Furrowing her brow, Elizabeth looked up just in time to see Major John Sheppard come flying through the Stargate. Tucking his head into his chest, he landed in a somersault and was on his feet facing the Stargate with his weapon held up in the blink of an eye. He immediately started to shoot while yelling for someone to either put up the shield or shut the wormhole down. Or both, he really didn't care.

"_Now_ would be good!" He yelled just as what could best be described as a giant spider stepped into the room. Sheppard and Ford immediately aimed for the head, pounding bullet after bullet into the creature and forcing it back until only half of it remained on this side of the event horizon. _Then_ the technician reacted to Sheppard's command and shut the Gate down. A terrible scream ripped through the room as the spider was severed in half before it collapsed. Stepping up to it, Sheppard shot another round into the creature before he was convinced it was dead.

Without saying a word, Sheppard turned and instantly found the technician behind the control panel. He was about to berate the boy despite their level difference when Elizabeth cut in.

"I take it that planet is a no?"

"A very big no," Sheppard said, staring daggers into the technician. "And that wasn't even the biggest of them."

Elizabeth turned to the cowering technician before heading for the stairs. As soon as she was within reach, she put a hand on Sheppard's arm.

"We'll deal with the problem later," she said under her breath before bringing a radio up to her lips. "Can we get a quarantine team to the Gate room? We have a big mess to take care of."

Without waiting for a response, she turned to the very dead spider and shivered.

"Yeah," Sheppard said, "my thoughts exactly."

"How many?" She couldn't stop staring at the strange creature, even as a team in hasmat suits appeared.

"Imagine an Earth-sized spider's nest. Then multiply it by three and blow them up to roughly that size." Elizabeth's face fell.

"Not quite the sanctuary we were looking for then."

"Just a little off target, yes."

"Excuse me," came Rodney's voice. "Let's not forget the one that jumped me from behind."

Elizabeth turned to look at the man and, for the first time, noticed the not-so-delicate thread that was wrapped around his neck and waist. Rodney's expression was that of exaggerated anguish as he looked back an forth between Elizabeth and Sheppard. If he was expecting sympathy, he didn't get any.

"I'm still waiting for that 'thank you', Rodney," Sheppard said with a slight sneer.

"Then you'll be waiting for a very long time, Major. If it weren't for you killing that one little spider then we wouldn't have that half of a much larger spider in Atlantis, nor would I have come very close to being breakfast. I do not enjoy being breakfast."

"I think it was actually late afternoon on the planet," Sheppard said in an offhand manner. "So you would have been tea."

"Regardless of the time of day, Major, you seem to have a knack for waking up very angry, very hungry insects that would like nothing better than suck our insides out of our chests."

"Well, excuse me for being a little sensitive about large bugs hanging around in webs who seem to be eying my neck!" Sheppard stepped right up to Rodney and used his superior height to stare the scientist down.

"You didn't have to kill it," Rodney replied without backing down. "Walking around the web would have sufficed."

"Had I known that it would have woken the rest up, then, no, I wouldn't have killed it. In hindsight that was probably a bad idea." Sheppard seemed to be giving in, which was rather unusual; the look in Rodney's eye betrayed his distrust. However, Sheppard was not done. "But I still saved your neck."

"Would you say the same about waking up the Wraith?" Rodney asked this in a very low, threatening tone. In response, Sheppard's eyes widened and he looked about ready to actually attack Rodney had it not been for Elizabeth stepping between them, pushing the two men apart.

"Gentlemen, please."

Sheppard snarled at Rodney over the top of Elizabeth's head.

"There is no need for that, Major," Elizabeth said, stepping back. "Now I know this is a stressful time for all of us but we have to keep ourselves in check. We will find a planet in time, we just have to be patient and keep our heads. Having our ranking military officer in chains for murder is the last thing we need right now."

She looked at Sheppard who conceded and took a step back, his brow furrowed in frustration. Rodney, on the other hand, looked offended that she hadn't said anything about needing him alive but didn't speak up; the look on Elizabeth's face was enough to stop him.

"I didn't sign up for life-sucking aliens and giant bugs when I agreed to come," Rodney said instead, his eyes still on Sheppard.

"None of us did, Rodney," Elizabeth sighed. "Now I think it best if the two of you calmed down before we debrief. We don't need to be at each other's throats while trying to save hundreds of other people."

"You're sending us to our rooms?" Sheppard asked, finally looking somewhere other than Rodney.

"If you want to think of it in that light, then yes I am. Shower, sleep, eat, I don't care what you do so long as you two don't kill each other in the process. We'll meet again in the conference room at eighteen-hundred this evening." With that as a farewell, Elizabeth ascended the steps to return to her office and to continue her search for a suitable planet in order to protect her people.

---

After leaving the Control Room and depositing of his gear in the armory, Sheppard stormed through the halls while trying to keep something of a composure. Nobody spoke to him or dared to approach him as he took hall after hall to get to his room. At one point he actually had to pause and turn around, having missed his passageway in his anger.

How _dare_ Rodney say that.

As soon as his door was closed behind him, Sheppard turned around and slammed his fist into the wall, yelling obscenities at the dent he made while imagining it was Rodney's face. He could not _stand_ that man sometimes. Genius this and genius that did not make up for the fact that Rodney was next to useless in a fight. He spooked easily, held a gun as if it were going to bite him, and could not go three words without saying how brilliant he was and how stupid everyone around him was in comparison. And, at the moment, Sheppard could not decide which trait he hated the most. Hell, he hated them all.

Anger, however, quickly turned to regret. Not over what he had said to Rodney but over the fact that he had slammed his bare fist into a metal wall. A very hard metal wall. Pain was now coursing up the length of his arm and his knuckles were bleeding and already bruised. He swore rather brilliantly as he shook the hand out. The movement only made him wince.

"Great," Sheppard muttered to himself, "Elizabeth is going to kill me."

Rubbing at his brow with his uninjured left hand, Sheppard glanced at the clock near his bed. He still had a couple of hours before the debriefing which meant he had plenty of time to get this checked out. Hopefully it wasn't anything more than a slight strain. Anything else could be detrimental to the survival of Atlantis.

Before leaving, Sheppard took off his jacket and, delicately pulling his throbbing hand through the cuff, tossed it across the room where it slid off his bed to land in a pile on the floor. He didn't bother picking it up and it simply blended in with the haphazard shape the room was already in.

It did not take long for Sheppard to reach the infirmary and even less time for Carson Beckett to take notice of him. The Scotsman smiled in greeting and patted the shoulder of the woman he was speaking with before turning and addressing Sheppard properly.

"What brings you here, Major? You didn't discover a creature hanging off of your leg, did ya'?" Carson grinned from ear to ear and Sheppard scowled.

"I thought we agreed 'never again'." He would have held up one hand in gesture had it not been for his injury. Instead, his scowl only deepened. The expression did not last for long, however, before he held up his injured hand. "I came about this."

"Scrape it up, did we?" Carson took the Major's hand and started to examine it before pointing the man to one of the beds to have a seat.

"Not exactly," Sheppard said as he sat down. "Rodney insulted me and…"

"I'm not going to have to fix him up, will I?" Carson asked as he pulled on a glove. Glancing at Sheppard over his shoulder, he looked genuinely concerned.

"No, but I might have to find someway to get a dent out of my wall."

Carson frowned as he turned to fully face Sheppard. "You're saying that you punched the wall."

It wasn't so much of a question as it was a confirmation to which Sheppard nodded. Carson sighed and rolled his eyes heavenward while muttering under his breath. "We'll have to take a closer look at it, then; make sure things are were they should be."

When Sheppard held up his hand once again, he was pleased to see that it was not swollen which meant he probably had not broken it. His body visibly relaxed as this realization took hold. Carson glanced up and Sheppard momentarily before straightening completely.

"Well, good news is that I don't think it's broken, but you seem to have realized that," Carson said with something of a lopsided grin. Despite that, his expression immediately became serious as he continued. "However, I would like to take a couple of x-rays, just to be sure."

Sheppard nodded and glanced around the infirmary. Hopefully Elizabeth wouldn't show up. He'd need some time to prepare himself for telling her how he had injured his dominant hand in a rather childish way. When he didn't see her, Sheppard sighed in relief. He would have to face her eventually, he just wasn't prepared to do it right now.

Carson returned not long after Sheppard had made his sweep of the room and gestured for the Major to follow him. Sheppard hopped off the bed and followed the doctor towards a rather sophisticated looking Ancient device.

"Place your hand there, Major," Carson instructed, pointing to a spot right under a large casement. "And if you could take a seat…"

The doctor rounded the table to arrange Sheppard's hand palm-side up with fingers extended. Sheppard winced but was pleased that the pain was not as bad as it had been. That only meant it was getting better, right?

Carson disappeared behind a computer terminal for a moment before instructing Sheppard to turn his hand over in order to get the other side. After changing the film, Carson disappeared once more and told Sheppard to be still.

"Very good, thank you, Major," Carson said with a nod a moment later. Sheppard simply tightened his lips in response and lifted his hand off the table and into his lap. Glancing up at the ceiling to see if there was anything particularly interesting about it, Sheppard stood and walked to where Carson was sitting a moment later when asked to do so.

"Just as I suspected." Carson pointed at a screen on which the x-rays had shown up; he would retrieve the actual prints later. "The bones in your hand are intact. However, I would be willing to say that you bruised it up pretty well upon impact. Just what are you mad at Rodney for, this time?"

"It's not important," Sheppard said as he glanced away. The mere thought of Rodney's gall still enraged him but he was big enough to not repeat what had already been said.

"Right." Carson studied the Major for a moment before pointing back towards the part of the infirmary they had just come from. "Let me just bandage that up and you can be on your way."

Thanks," Sheppard replied.

The cleaning and bandaging process took next to no time and Sheppard was thanking Carson once again before he knew it. Standing up and brushing his hands on his pants, Sheppard smiled at the Scot.

"How's about this being another story we don't tell anyone?"

"Just be careful," the doctor warned. "The hand will be sore for a couple'o days but you should be able to use it well enough. Just don't plan on doing any climbing."

Sheppard allowed himself to laugh. "But if anyone asks about the hand—"

"What hand?"

"Exactly," Sheppard said, pointing at his friend. "Thanks again, Carson."

"My pleasure, Major."

With a smile, Sheppard almost shoved his hands into his pockets before thinking twice about it. Instead, he checked his watch to see whether or not food would still be available in the mess hall. He hadn't eaten since very early that morning and his stomach was just now reminding him of that fact. With a slight frown, Sheppard was just lowering his arm when he ran right into someone heading in the opposite direction. Bringing up his hands in order to steady the other person, he was momentarily horrified to see whose shoulders he was holding—Elizabeth.

"John!" She exclaimed, flustered from suddenly walking into the tall pilot.

"Hello, Elizabeth," he said with a smile, trying to smooth over their collision. "I didn't see you there."

"Well, you did suddenly appear from the corridor." As if suddenly realizing which passageway Sheppard had come from, she looked him up and down. "You aren't injured are… What happened to your hand?"

"This?" Sheppard asked with a laugh as he held up his hand. "It's nothing. I must have run into something while trying to not get eaten by a bunch of big ass spiders."

"I can tell when you're lying, John," Elizabeth said with narrowed eyes. "What really happened."

"I ran into a wall?" He tried. Elizabeth nodded.

"I thought so. Can you still shoot?"

"I was going to go check after eating something. Carson said it'll be fine as long as I don't go running into any more walls."

While Elizabeth was obviously upset, she was taking it a lot better than he thought she would. In fact, Sheppard had been preparing himself for a full blown tempest about how careful he should be seeing as he was in charge of Atlantis's military personnel and one of the most important members on this base considering how close the Wraith were. He suspected, however, that Elizabeth knew just how aware of this he actually was despite his tendency to be somewhat reckless.

"It won't happen again," he sincerely promised.

"Good." She nodded. "Major."

"Doctor Weir."

And they parted. Sheppard glanced back at her after a couple of steps and blew out the air he had been holding in his lungs. Perhaps she was a bit more upset than he had originally thought. That farewell had been, for the lack of a better word, chilling.

Gritting his teeth, Sheppard decided to rush through food and spend as much time as he could in the shooting range to make sure his hand still worked properly. And if it didn't…well, that was not really an option.

---

Elizabeth entered the conference room and was pleased to see Sheppard and his team already gathered there. She nodded to them as she rounded the table and took her seat at the head. Glancing to Sheppard and his bandaged hand, she sat forward and placed her forearms on the table.

"What happened on the planet, Major?"

Sheppard looked her in the eye before turning away and gesturing to his team with his injured hand. After countless rounds with a variety of different weapons, his hand was sore but working just fine. That, however, was pushed to the back of his mind.

"Nothing really happened in the first couple of hours," he started. "There wasn't a village nearby or much of anything other than trees. Lots and lots of trees. It got a little tiring after awhile, actually. Anyway, just as we had decided to start a general sweep of the immediate area I noticed the first spider. It was a little bigger than the Earthly variety but I didn't pay it much mind."

"Can I interrupt," Rodney asked, doing just that. "I'd like to say that the Major practically jumped out of his skin and gave the thing a wide berth. It was only this big toe to toe." He held his hands maybe seven inches apart and nodded. Ford rolled his eyes.

"You squealed and told me to shoot it, if I recall correctly," Sheppard shot back, his eyes narrowing dangerously. Rodney opened his mouth to respond but Elizabeth was quicker.

"Gentlemen," she warned. "This is not an open discussion table. Only contribute intell, not jabs at each others egos. Major, if you would continue."

"Of course," he nodded. "As I was saying, I didn't really think much about the spider. It was big and I avoided it, nothing much to tell. We didn't see another one for roughly a quarter of an hour and, just like the last, it was sitting in the middle of a web of nearly invisible thread. For the next ninety minutes they became more and more prevalent. Figuring the area we were heading would simply get more infested, I ordered the team to move out and head in a different direction since this was obviously not a suitable place to use as shelter from the Wraith.

"Just as we were leaving, Ford's hat got snagged in the bottom of one of the webs. The spider, who was apparently hiding in the branches, was the size of a cat and moving fast. Without a second thought, I shot it twice in order to prevent any trouble and we took up a quick pace."

Rodney snorted indignantly near the end and Elizabeth turned to him. "You have something to add?"

Looking up and around, Rodney pointed at himself. "Me?"

"Yes."

"No, nothing. Just thinking about what's coming up. Go ahead, Major, you're doing a fantastic job."

The look Sheppard gave Rodney was not a happy one as he turned to look at Elizabeth.

"Anyway," he drawled, a harsh edge to his voice. It was growing increasingly obvious how upset he was with the scientist. "It wasn't until a spider the size of a collie jumped McKay from behind that we knew there was a problem. After the three of us," he indicated Ford, Teyla, and himself, "disposed of the creature, we started to hightail it towards the Gate. I didn't want to take any chances."

"Of course not, John, and I'm glad you didn't. Is that it then?"

Sheppard leaned back and slung one arm over the back of his chair with a shrug. "I think you know the rest and I'll detail it in my report. The summary is that a whole crap load of them started to chase us—both on the ground and in the trees. We gunned a couple of the faster ones down and would have had that last one under control before stepping through the Gate had Rodney not tripped over his own feet causing both Ford and myself to go down. Our friend in the Gate Room was able to catch up and would have taken Ford's head off if the Lieutenant hadn't been quicker than he was."

There was silence for a moment before Elizabeth glanced around the table with one brow raised. When nobody had anything further to contribute, she sat forward and stood up, her hands still on the table.

"Right then. If you haven't done so, I want each of you checked out by Doctor Beckett just to make sure you're okay." She looked at Sheppard as she said this and he gave her a thumbs up. A slight smile flickered across her lips before she continued. "I've scheduled another mission for the four of you tomorrow morning to be commenced at oh-eight-hundred.

"This planet is mentioned in the database to be inhabited with friendly natives who were willing to trade and to fight with them against the Wraith," Elizabeth continued. "The Ancients seemed to believe the native peoples harnessed a great energy source that could be used against their enemies. By the time they discovered this source it was apparently too late to fully explore it; there aren't any records explaining what it is they found, if anything significant at all. It did say, however, that these people are highly advanced and were on the verge of space travel when the Ancients gained their allegiance."

"Could it be similar to a zedpee-em?" Rodney asked, intrigued. Elizabeth simply shrugged.

"It's possible but if they were nearly as advanced as the Ancients the Wraith probably decimated their cities. I don't even know if there are any people left on the planet. Regardless, I want you to go to the planet to see what you can find. Even if its people are dead or do not have this power, it could be place to safe harbor our people when the Wraith arrive."

"On a peopled planet?" Rodney cut in.

"We don't know if there are people there, Rodney."

"Well, yes, but if there are, isn't it likely that the Wraith know about them? They could have been culled already."

"Yes, all of that is true, but we're running out of options very quickly. We need to follow any lead we happen across that could possibly help in stopping the Wraith. Even if there are people who do not understand the technology of their ancestors, we must look for it anyway. Do I make myself clear?"

"As crystal," Sheppard cut in, eying Rodney.

The scientist made a face but didn't say a word.

"Good, you're dismissed." She sat down and shuffled through a couple of papers she had brought with her. Just as Sheppard was about to leave, she glanced up and said, "Will you stay behind for a moment, John?"

He turned to look at her before telling Ford he'd talk to him later. Walking to the woman's side, he tilted his brow.

"Yes?"

"Your hand, it's okay?"

"It is."

"You're sure?" She looked up at him in order to determine whether or not he was lying.

Sheppard's expression was grim. "Yes, Elizabeth, I'm sure. I wouldn't risk the others if I wasn't."

"Good. I'll see you in the morning then. Good night, John." She looked back at her papers.

"'Night, Elizabeth."

---

A/N: I know, I know, Season One, but my current lack of cable television has proved it difficult for me to fully enjoy Season Two. That being the case, I have chosen to restrain from dealing with characters—such as Ronan—that I am not currently familiar with. Fortunately, I have someone taping the upcoming season for me so, hopefully, I'll be able to catch up. I hope that hasn't turned anyone off, 'cause there's a lot more to come…


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter Two_

The area around the Stargate looked just like any other world they had explored thus far from the tall coniferous trees to the various shrubs and prairie grasses that had grown up around the stone ruins in the immediate area. Sheppard glanced at the life-signs detector and was rather pleased to see that nothing was in their immediate proximity.

"No giant spiders this time?" Rodney asked, shielding his eyes from the sun. It appeared to be an early summer afternoon based on the colour of the foliage and the position of the sun. Birds trilled in the distance and flew overhead as Sheppard and his team stepped in to the hip-high yellow grass.

"At least not here," Sheppard said as he pulled his sunglasses out of a pouch. Positioning them on the bridge of his nose, he furrowed his brow and walked around the Stargate, taking in the surroundings. Upon his return, he asked, "And you say that you haven't traded with these people, Teyla?"

"No. My people have not been to this planet, at least not during my lifetime." She shook her head. "It is strange to me."

"Right then," Sheppard said, lowering his weapon. "Let's go exploring."

"Any idea which direction to take?" Rodney asked. He did not quite look at Sheppard just as the Major did not quite look at him. The argument from the previous day was still vivid in both of their minds and neither was ready to make up. Teyla found it childish but kept that opinion to herself.

"I've always been fond of west, myself," Sheppard said, glancing at the small handheld device once again.

"Which could be the complete opposite direction of a village that might be nearby," Rodney commented, as he intentionally turned to the east.

"It could be," Sheppard replied as he started walking away. "Or it could lead us right to them."

Rodney frowned but didn't say anything further. Looking around the open prairie, he was quick to follow the Major, Teyla and Ford taking up the rear.

The small group walked for some time in silence, each taking in the surroundings. It was a very pleasant world with a cool breeze and warm summer air. Though insects buzzed around them, they were not the monstrous creatures of the previous planet. Instead, they were rather normal and bland and did nothing but dart in and out of the shade cast by the tall trees Sheppard, as usual, was leading them along, life-signs detector in hand as he took in their surroundings. They were following one edge of a wide, grassy break in the forest that stretched for miles in front of them. Every once in a while, he would get the feeling that he was being watched, but the life-signs detector told him that nothing was in their immediate area. Not even them. After this persisted for a length, he paused and shook the small computer. Still, the dots that should have been his party did not show up.

"What did you do to it, Major?" Rodney asked, taking notice of Sheppard.

"Either we are suddenly not human or this damn piece of junk isn't working." He looked at it again before tossing it to Rodney. "See what you can't do to it."

"So you're turning to the brilliant scientist once again to fix what it is you broke?" Rodney nearly dropped the small computer as he said this and couldn't hide the slight colour his cheeks turned.

Sheppard looked at Rodney who gave him an equally annoyed look back. "Get on with it, Rodney."

"Fine."

"Good."

Behind the two men, Ford and Teyla exchanged glances before Sheppard started up the trek once again.

It was some time later when even Sheppard was starting to think they should head back to the Stargate that something darted through the forest to their right. Sheppard and Ford brought their weapons up immediately as they listened for any further disturbances among the thick branches.

"Any chance you have that thing working yet, McKay?" Sheppard asked, his eyes still trained on the trees.

"Almost." Came the scientist's reply. He was a few paces back with Teyla, his head bent over the device. "It seems as if a few components had come loose."

He mumbled to himself for a moment before exclaiming, "There!" and snapping the cover back into place. The display went to snow for a moment before blinking back to life. Rodney's face fell. They were surrounded.

"Oh no," he muttered.

"I don't like the sound of that, McKay!" Sheppard said, retreating to where the scientist was standing.

"And I don't like the look of this." He held the device up so that Sheppard could see. The Major swore quite brilliantly before spinning back to face the forest. "They could just be animals, Major. A couple of these are programmed to show any living thing over a certain size."

"I don't think they are," Sheppard replied.

"What makes you say that?"

"That," Sheppard said, indicating a small group of people who had just stepped out of the forest. Each of the three men and one woman were dressed simply in robes that fluttered in the air behind them, the hilts of concealed weapons catching the afternoon sun as they approached. Rodney visibly swallowed and dropped the hand holding the detector to his side.

"Oh," he said rather simply.

The man in the lead stopped several meters in front of Sheppard and looked at his teammates, studying them. The natives were dressed in leather and fabric of varying styles and shades of brown; the long robes they wore, however, concealed most of their bodies so Sheppard could not get a good look at what they wore. Despite that, it was obvious that each—except for, perhaps, the one woman in the group who wore a skirt and bodice of leather—wore more fabric than leather, leaving delicate areas of their bodies effectively exposed. This would not have seemed odd if it were not for the ferocious looking sword each of the natives carried either on their hip or strapped to their back. Sheppard could only imagine what that meant as the newcomers regarded him before looking to their leader. The man held up one hand, his palm towards the Atlantis team.

"Nor par ørpons hav infin spunkt wær."

Sheppard shook his head slowly. "I don't speak your language."

The man nodded before starting over, his words accented: "There is no need for weapons, my friends, unless you come seeking war."

Sheppard stared hard at the man before lowering his weapon. Ford followed suit but neither man loosened their grip completely.

"No, not war," the Major assured. "But we could use allies against the Wraith and a place to shelter our people in case things go wrong back home."

Though his fellows frowned, the leader simply shook his head. "So it is true; they have awoken."

"I'm afraid so," Sheppard said, taking in each of the natives before him.

"Our people have foreseen this day, but it is terrible news still." Turning to the woman, they stared at each other for a moment before she nodded and sprinted off into the forest behind them. Turning back to a slightly unsettled Sheppard, the leader gestured towards the retreating woman. "Come, I will bring you to the Elders. Thea has gone off to herald our arrival, so we must step lively. She is rather quick and news has a certain way of traveling quickly in these parts."

His smile suggested that he knew something and Sheppard did not like it. Though this initial interaction had been brief, he could already tell that these people were hiding something and having had his fair share of run-ins—namely with the Genii—he had grown wary of any and all people from these new worlds, especially those who acted like this man.

"I am Grare Linaris," the leader said, bringing Sheppard out of his musings. Grare put his hand on Sheppard's upper arm in greeting, which got something of a smile out of the Major.

"Major John Sheppard," he replied before pointing to each member of his team. "Doctor McKay, Teyla Emmagan, and Lieutenant Ford."

"My day has brightened for meeting you," Grare said, bowing.

"And—ah—mine, too," Sheppard said, glancing at Teyla. She shook her head, indicating once again that she did not know this people.

"You seem to have injured your hand, Major," Grare said next, noticing the fresh bandage Carson had applied that morning. Sheppard's wrist was also wrapped in a thin layer of cloth to prevent any further strain he might impart on the already strained joint. Elizabeth had not looked happy that morning but believed Sheppard when he assured her that he was fine.

"Yes, I ran into a wall," Sheppard said lamely, using the same excuse as the previous day. "Just a few scrapes."

"We have Healers in the village…"

"No, I'll be fine, thank you."

Grare nodded and Sheppard had a feeling he was being belittled, which he didn't like. Pressing his lips together, he fell a couple of steps behind their guide and glanced at Ford. The younger man shook his head and shrugged slightly; the generic answer for someone who didn't actually ask a question.

After that, Sheppard and his team followed Grare through the thick forest in silence and at a relatively quick pace. As far as the Major could tell, they were on the only clear path through the tangled trees, but he did not ask Grare to confirm this. Instead, he was keeping track of where they were going and how long it took to get to the village in case they needed to make a quick escape. They were just nearing the edge of the forest—evident by the shafts of light coming from ahead—when Sheppard realized it had taken them about the same amount of time to reach this point from the wide path as it had for them to walk from the Stargate to where they met the natives. The thought was a little unsettling as far as a quick escape was concerned and Sheppard frowned deeply. Hopefully these feelings of unrest that had taken up residence in the pit of his stomach were merely Wraith related.

Sheppard was so consumed by his thoughts that he nearly walked into their guide.

"Welcome, my friends," Grare said as he gestured for Sheppard and his team to break into the sunlight. Sheppard hesitated slightly before stepping out of the trees. When he did, he stopped in mid-stride which caused him to stumble. Upon catching his balance, Sheppard looked up, his jaw somewhat slack. Before him was a spire of twisted steel that rose a thousand feet into the sky. Around it there were shorter structures, all blackened from age and, Sheppard suspected, ancient war.

"Major, what are you…" Rodney trailed off as he, too, noticed the steel forest before them and the village situated in the shadows there.

Grare came to Sheppard's side, a slight frown on his face.

"The Great Spires are all that remain of a city that once stretched from here to the horizon." He gestured to the east and Sheppard followed with his eyes, not surprised to see more, albeit smaller, steel ruins. "The Wraith devastated this planet during the Great War. Since then, the Elders have upheld the Will of the Mother and have not let us explore the technology of the past era. For this, the Wraith have not come for nearly seven-hundred years. The Mother has been kind enough to protect us, Her Children, from the terrors of the Wraith."

Sheppard nodded, his brow raised slightly. He caught the look in Rodney's eye as the man discussed his religion and mouthed the words _seven-hundred_ over Grare's head as if to get the other man over his science-beats-religion prejudice for the moment. The scientist seemed to take the hint as he turned to Grare.

"Seven-hundred years?" Rodney asked. "That is a very long time."

"The Mother has been kind," Grare responded without looking at Rodney.

"I'm sure she is," Rodney continued, "but there must be something that you do to keep the Wraith away. I mean, there can't be a…" The good doctor trailed off when he took notice of the warning look in Sheppard's eye. "How'd you do it?"

Grare turned to look at Rodney and lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "During the last raid we made the Wraith believe they had completely destroyed us. These forests provide us with more than just game, Doctor McKay. The Mother is sure of that."

Sheppard frowned, once again getting the feeling that Grare was not telling the whole truth. He had run across religions in the past that dealt with this sort of thing but he suspected there was something more complex going on here. However, he did not comment on it. The last thing he needed was to cast suspicion on himself and the members of his team for being too nosy. He had done quite enough of that in the recent months to last a good long while.

They were just about to cross a wide but shallow stream that separated them from the village when Thea returned. She strode towards Sheppard and Grare through the ankle-deep water and said something to Grare in their tongue. He nodded and turned to Sheppard.

"The Elders welcome you to our village, Major, and ask that you speak with them at once."

Sheppard nodded. "Of course."

"This way, then," Grare said with a gesture and a light touch to Sheppard's back. Sheppard frowned but said nothing and continued walking through the water, mildly concerned that it was finding its way into his boots. These were the only socks he had and did not need them to become sopping wet. It was then in his moment of slight misery that Sheppard noticed Thea, Grare, and the rest of his escort wore boots that reached well above their ankles, each with a protective leather wrap over the laces to prevent infiltration of water or anything else unpleasant. Sheppard frowned, wishing he had something similar at the moment.

They reach the village within minutes of crossing the stream and, based on the grumbling coming from behind him, Sheppard was not the only one whose socks were soaked through. He would have to see about fixing this problem at the earliest possible moment.

For now, however, they had come up to a tall, gabled, wooden structure of a fairly primitive architecture. Glancing around, Sheppard noted that the rest of the village consisted of tents of leather and a few other wooden buildings. Had it not been for the Genii then he would have jumped to the conclusion that these were a rather primitive people. As it was, Sheppard remained wary and particularly observant. Turning back to the structure before him, he took it in. Based on its size alone, Sheppard correctly assumed that this was the building of the village Elders. At further inspection, however, Sheppard took notice of the five beams that projected from the plane of the wall near the roof. The center most beam projected the furthest and was carved to resemble the head of an eagle. When Grare noticed Sheppard staring at the beautiful carving, he touched the Major's shoulder and pointed at the beam.

"The Mother often watches over her children from the sky through the eyes of the noble eagles that sore high above our heads. These animals are sacred to us." The tone with which Grare spoke was gentle, almost loving, and Sheppard could see that he truly believed in this female deity of his people. It made Sheppard smile lightly as he was escorted inside with his teammates. Thea and the rest of Grare's fellows waited outside the door.

Much like the exterior, the interior was stark of decoration except for the meticulously carved chairs the seven village Elders sat in and the enormous carved and decorated center beam that held the roof over their head. Here the wings of the eagle were evident and carved into the beam with deep, thick lines that hardly compromised the structural integrity of the member for its width and depth. He was so caught up in looking at the beam that Sheppard missed Grare and his team bow deeply at the waist. When Rodney cleared his throat, the Major quickly lowered himself into a similar position only to straighten immediately as Grare came out of his bow.

The woman in the center-most chair who was obviously the council's leader spoke to Grare in their own language, her voice rough with age. She looked far younger than she sounded, however, despite her long white hair and wise disposition. The same was for all of the other Elders. Each had white hair that passed their shoulders (including the men) but none seemed frail or, indeed, elderly. Sheppard found this borderline fascinating as he took in each one in turn.

A short exchange went on between Grare, the leader, and a few members of the council. Sheppard watched the woman rather than further studying the building on the assumption that she would soon address him. Sure enough, within a couple of minutes, the leader turned to Sheppard and his team.

"Master Linaris tells us that you bring news of the Wraiths' Awakening, Major, and that you seek an alliance with my people, but you did not speak of where you come from. Grare does not recognize your accent nor your weapons. Tells us."

"We come from Atlantis."

The moment the name was out of his mouth, the room erupted into chatter as the natives spoke their surprise. Within seconds, the Elders started to settle and they all turned to take in Sheppard.

"That is impossible, Major," the leader said. "Atlantis was abandoned a long time ago when the Lanteans fled from the galaxy they had let whither and die under the horrors of the Wraith. The Spires that make up our landscape are all that remain of the civilization that fell within weeks of the Lanteans' abandonment." The ferocity of her voice surprised Sheppard and his team. They glanced at each other before Sheppard could form the words to answer her unspoken accusation.

"We are only recent arrivals in the city, ma'am, and are simple explorers from another galaxy that is very far away. We inadvertently stumbled across the Wraith in our explorations and they are now bearing down on our city to finish what they started ten-thousand years ago." He looked at each of the Elders as he said this, trying to convince them of the truth. A few looked sympathetic but the leader still seemed to have her own doubts.

"And what do you think we could offer you? Your weapons alone suggest that your technology is far more advanced than anything we have here."

"Shelter," Sheppard said. "We have many more scientists than soldiers who cannot battle the Wraith and we are looking for a place to safe harbor them until the danger has passed us by. We are prepared to offer compensation in return if we must used an inhabited planet to protect our people."

The woman nodded slowly and Sheppard was almost afraid that she would turn them away without a second thought. The smile that suddenly crossed her lips, however, eased Sheppard's fears and he allowed himself to smile as well. Standing, the woman stepped down off the dais the council chairs were situated on and walked across the floor to Sheppard and his team, her long skirts flowing around her legs as she moved.

"Though you come from a city that long abandoned my people, you do not lie about your noble intentions, nor about your origins. We have already called for a celebration for your arrival among our people. After the merriments conclude and in the morning before the sun is too high in the sky, we can speak of an alliance, but I would talk only with your leader of such things. Welcome to Orta, Major Sheppard."

The leader had escorted Sheppard outside the council building where the Atlantis team was told to follow a young boy to the tent that had been set up for them. Sheppard held up a finger to tell the boy to wait as he turned back to the leader.

"I will need to contact our leader in order to tell her of your conditions."

The leader nodded slowly and gestured to Grare. She spoke to him in their native tongue before bidding farewell to Sheppard once more. Turning, she followed the other members of the council back into their building, the door shut behind them by a guard standing outside.

Sheppard glanced at Grare and lifted one eyebrow. "Well?"

"Once you are shown your tent, I am to bring you and one of your fellows back to the Portal so that you can communicate with your leader. Master Rehina wishes for you to stay in the village tonight and to enjoy the celebration that is in your name."

Though weary, Sheppard nodded in agreement and did not even think to question the woman's strange title as they started to cross the village to the tent they would reside in for the night. Grare followed along silently and Sheppard took the time to observe the village around him.

As far as he could ascertain, these people led quiet lives, though it did not explain the occasional sword he saw sheathed and strapped to either a back or someone's belt. The tents did not suggest a settled way of life which made Sheppard wonder about the council building and its permanent nature. Surely they did not drag those logs around each time they moved. Frowning, Sheppard hardly noticed as their young guide stopped and practically toppled over the child. With a grunted apology, Sheppard wiped his hands together before placing them on his hips, trying to conceal his embarrassment.

"Okay…" he said, looking at this team and Grare. "I suppose we should get back to the Stargate. Ford, you stay here with McKay. And Rodney, keep your eyes peeled. Teyla, you're with me."

Ford nodded and Rodney pulled out his datapad to take readings. Teyla stepped up to Sheppard's side, indicating that she was ready to go.

"If you are ready, Major, we should hurry. The forest is no place to be once night falls and twilight is not far away."

Sheppard furrowed his brow. "It takes hours to get to the Gate."

"Only if you take the long path, such as you did. If we take up a quick pace we can reach it within the hour. It is much closer than you think it is, Major. You were going in quite the wrong direction if it was your intention to find us."

"Really?" Sheppard asked.

"Yes, Major. I know these lands; it will not take us long."

And with that, Grare took off. Apparently, quick pace meant jog which, tired as he was, Sheppard was reluctant to do. The thought of dry socks, however, made him keep going even over the rather rough terrain they quickly found themselves in. Several times, as they were darting through the forest, Sheppard nearly lost sight of Grare. The man reappeared, however, just as Sheppard was starting to get worried. Each time this happened, he glanced at Teyla but said nothing as there was nothing to say.

Sure enough, Grare had not lied and they were at the Stargate after jogging for a little less than half an hour. As he stood catching his breath, Sheppard was dismayed to see that they had come from the east meaning that Rodney had been right. Dammit.

"Once you are ready, Major, you should open the Portal. The creatures are already starting to grow restless."

Without a word, Sheppard nodded at Teyla who went to the DHD and dialed Atlantis. As soon as the Stargate established a wormhole, Sheppard touched his earpiece and looked at the event horizon.

"Atlantis base, this is Major John Sheppard. Over."

"Go ahead Major, this is Dr. Weir. Is everything all right?"

John noddedeven though Elizabeth would not be able to see the gesture. "It is. We have spoken with the village Elders and they are willing to talk about an alliance against the Wraith, but not until morning at the earliest."

There was a pause. "How far off is that, Major? I have three other meetings on three other worlds and, despite our time crunch, will not have enough time to negotiate an alliance for another day at least. I had hoped that you could take care of it."

Turning to Grare, Sheppard relayed this information.

"Dawn is in six hours, Doctor," Sheppard continued as soon as Grare had answered him. "It is nearly twilight here and I have been told many times that the forests are no place to be in the dark and I would take their word for it. However, my guide tells me that his leader is willing to accommodate your schedule since she will only speak with you; unlike us, they are not in a hurry. The Wraith have not come for them in nearly a century."

He could hear a sigh from Atlantis followed by a slight pause. "And I assume based on the transmission that you will not be returning to Atlantis until these talks?"

"They have called for a feast in our name and wish for us to remain among their people."

"I see. Contact us again in the morning, John, for an update to my schedule. Is there anything else?"

"Would it be possible to get four extra pairs of socks?" John asked.

"Pardon?" That had caught Elizabeth off guard.

"Socks. We had to walk through water and our shoes are soggy."

Chuckling that was not Elizabeth's came through John's earpiece and he smiled. It was a rather random request after all.

Within a minute, four pairs of socks came rolling through the Stargate and John was quick to scoop them up.

"Anything else?" Elizabeth asked.

"No."

"I'll speak with you again in six hours, then. Atlantis Base over and out."

The wormhole shut down within seconds of the transmission being cut and John was already on his way down the steps, holding up the socks to show Teyla.

"We could have bartered for some here, Major," she said in a low voice, glancing at Grare. Sheppard frowned and looked over his shoulder.

"Yes, I suppose we could have." Sheppard paused for a moment before glancing back at Teyla and holding out two pairs. "Mind holding these until we get back to the village? I promise to give you first pick on color."

Teyla smiled as she shook her head. Holding out her hand for the socks, she laughed softly. "You never cease to amaze me, Major."

"I'll take that as a compliment and thank you." John flashed her his first real smile since the previous day and turned back to Grare. "Now, let's say we get back to the village in order to avoid these critters."

Grare nodded and led them back to his people.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I know, I know, a slow start, but I promise things will pick up here soon with, perhaps, a little whumpage on the way.

---

_Chapter Three_

The Feast held in their name was nothing like Sheppard thought it would be. While there was a lot of food and a lot of people, it was quieter than he would have imagined. Most people sat around smaller fires, chatting amongst themselves and leaving the newcomers, for the most part, alone. There was a central table that held only fruit, nuts, and many kinds of bread, while the main part of the meal was either roasting in, on, or under the individual fires.

Sheppard and his team were just settling down around a large fire they had been told to sit at and were waiting for the bird they had been served to finish roasting when a figure approached from out of the dark. Having not met many of the natives, Sheppard was pleased to see that one of them was actually approaching them rather than the other way around which had led to a handful of awkward situations. As he stood to greet their guest, Sheppard recognized Thea, the woman who had met their group earlier in the day. He smiled lightly as she stepped into the firelight, noting instantly how she could almost look him in the eye; few women he had met were nearly his height. Other then that, she was young, much younger than Sheppard had first thought she was, and moved with the grace of a trained fighter. The long, sheathed sword strapped to her back confirmed his assumption and told of the weapon she used. Despite that, she was rather pretty with long features and dark brown hair that had been twisted into mock-dreadlocks and decorated with wooden beads and small mottled feathers. She wore the same outfit as before but had pulled a loose cotton tunic over the leather bodice as if to stave off the night's chill.

"The Elders have asked me to sit with you, Major Sheppard," she said in a quiet voice, her words accented. Rodney shifted slightly on his seat and raised his hand to object but Thea beat him to it. "I am not here to spy, Doctor McKay, only to observe. It has been many years since off-worlders have come to our village and the previous visit left a sour smell in the air. I'm sure you can understand."

"Of course we can," Sheppard said before Rodney could speak up. He gestured to one of the low seats and Thea took it with a grace Sheppard lacked; she folded gently, he plopped and nearly fell. Upon recovering, there was a short and somewhat awkward silence before Sheppard spoke up once again. "I don't believe we were formally introduced. You obviously know who I am, so…"

"Thea Alavione," she said with a smile. "And you come from the city of Atlantis?"

Sheppard nodded slowly, unsure of how she knew this. Thea smiled in response.

"News has a way from travelling quickly in these parts, Major."

"So I've been told."

Thea nodded before continuing. "Master Rehina speaks ill of your home, but the children are fascinated by the stories of old. Is it true that it sits upon the water?"

The enthusiasm in the woman's voice betrayed the fact that she, too, was still interested in the city and John could not help but wonder just how old she really was. But rather than asking, he simply returned her smile.

"Somehow, yes," Sheppard replied. To be quite honest, he was unsure of exactly how Atlantis stayed on the surface. He had come to suppose that it was some fancy Ancient device that he probably wouldn't be able to understand. That being the case, he never really pursued an answer. Atlantis stayed above the water and that was good enough for him. "But the mechanics of Atlantis really aren't that interesting to talk about."

"Yes," Thea conceded with a sigh. She glanced to the ground before saying, "But you must be curious about our planet, Major, or is it just like the others you have visited?"

Sheppard shrugged slightly and looked at his companions. "Most planets we have come across are similar to some extent, I suppose, at least the inhabited ones. There have been a few deserts and a handful of jungles. Why do you ask?"

"I have only ever been to one world other than this one," Thea said slowly as if she was picking her words carefully. "As an apprentice I left Orta to train under a Master residing on Torran. It is tradition. However, that is the furthest across the galaxy I have travelled. Perhaps when I am a Master I will leave this world for another, but that Rank is still out of my grasp."

Sheppard rose his brow in question. The others had gone back to their own conversations, though, as Sheppard noted, they were still glancing at Thea and himself every now and again, evidence that they were actually paying more attention to the Major's conversation than their own. He paid them no mind as he poked at the fire with his boot.

Looking back at the young woman after a moment, he nodded once before asking: "How's that?"

"I am barely in my third decade, Major. If I were a Master, it would indeed be a feat. No, few pass into Masterhood before their thirty-fifth birthday and many not at all. I am not exceptional by any means and Grare, my Master, still keeps an eye over me at all times."

"It sounds like he's smothering you, to me," Sheppard said as he leaned forward to check on the bird. Opening it, he was suddenly consumed by the smell of herbs and poultry. It was not until that moment that he realized just how hungry he actually was and how little the fruit and bread had done to satisfy his hunger.

"I should feel privileged that my Master still has something to teach me even though I became a full member of the Order before my fifth-and-twentieth year." There was an edge to her tone that went ignored as she tilted her head to one side. "It is ready to eat, Major."

Sheppard nodded as he reached in and effectively tore a leg off of the bird. It was larger than a chicken but much smaller than a turkey with a slightly elongated body. When he bit into the meat, he was hardly surprised that it tasted like neither Earth bird.

"If you ask me," Sheppard said after swallowing, "that answer sounds rehearsed."

"What do you mean?" Thea asked, narrowing her eyes into slits.

Without the thought of possibly starting a fight with this Ortian woman, Sheppard continued. "I mean that you sound like you're repeating the lines from some textbook or teacher; there's no heart behind them."

"No heart?" Thea exclaimed, taking offense. "Grare is like a father to me. He has trained me since I was seven except for the two years I spent on Torran."

Sheppard made a _well, there you go_ gesture with his hand and Thea, clenching her jaw, made as if to stand up. Instead, she stayed sitting and closed her eyes, which caught Sheppard off guard. Just what was she doing? He stopped chewing as he watched her, thoughts of trouble finally surfacing in his mind. After a moment, however, the woman's shoulder's visibly relaxed and she sighed deeply. When she opened her eyes once more she looked to Sheppard and the yellow in her otherwise blue eyes flashed brilliantly in the firelight. The two looked at each other in silence before Thea opened her mouth to speak.

"Excuse me for that," was all she said.

"For what?"

"For my outburst," she continued as if answering a child's question. Sheppard frowned but remained silent. As if suddenly remembering that he would not understand, Thea shook her head in apology. "I have been trained to maintain my emotions and to keep them in check. An outburst of any kind generally betrays an imbalance within. Imbalance is a dangerous state, Major."

Sheppard rose his brow, fascinated by this woman. She moved, dressed, and carried a weapon such as a soldier would but she spoke the words of a monk. This suddenly made him wonder about the other people in this village. Did they believe in internal balance as she did, or was that reserved for these people of the Order, whatever that might be, exactly. Suddenly confused, Sheppard sat forward and tossed the bone he was holding into the fire and remained hunched over, his elbows on his knees. He could feel Thea's eyes on the side of his face but he didn't turn to look at her. Instead, he continued to stare into the flames and contemplated just what the next few days had in store.

---

The Feast went late into the evening and soon after the food had disappeared, a strange melody filled the air that was, surprisingly, accompanied by lively dancing. As soon as the music started, Thea explained to the Atlantis team that among her people, eating was a quiet affair. Feasts were less about the food and more about the activities after the food had been consumed.

"That seems backward," Rodney commented as he turned to watch the dancers behind him. "I've always thought of feasts as a time to eat as much food as humanly possibly…and then some."

"I'm not surprised," Sheppard said dryly as he, too, watched the natives. This earned him a dirty look from Rodney.

"Do not be angry with the Major, Doctor McKay," Teyla said, looking between the two men. She was now situated slightly behind them, sitting up straight while the men slouched. "Everyone on Atlantis knows that you enjoy food."

In the exaggerated way Dr. Rodney McKay did nearly everything, he turned to look at Teyla. "Well, you don't have to put it like that."

Teyla looked at him, blinking. "How else would you have me put it?"

"Gee, I don't know, you could have defended me and said that everyone enjoys eating a lot of food from time to time or…or…"

"Can it, Rodney," Sheppard said out the side of his mouth. He was too engrossed in watching a couple of young women dance to the strange melody of a flute and percussion to actually turn around, but he was paying his team enough mind to comment on their conversation.

"Why, so I can eat it later?" Rodney's voice rose in indignation. However, it seemed as if everybody—except Ford, who was snickering quietly on Sheppard's other side—had chosen that moment to ignore Rodney, which seemed to make the scientist even more upset.

"Don't encourage him, Ford," Sheppard said without moving more muscles than necessary to form those words. "We don't need a comedian on this team."

"Yes, sir," Ford said, smiling widely. Rodney made an _oh, well, that's great_ face and closed his arms over his chest, pouting as he did so. He was tempted to go on about poor, put-upon little Rodney McKay except for the fact that Sheppard actually exerted an ounce of energy to glance a warning in the scientist's direction. An obviously grown man complaining about being picked on was not going to help with any impression they were already giving off to these people and Rodney was smart enough to be perfectly aware of that fact.

The small group sat in silence for a length after that. The three men were sitting hunched over their knees, watching some of the more attractive female villagers dance while Teyla and Thea sat with their backs straight. While the Athosian's eyes were alternating between the dancing villagers and the three men in front of her, Thea was staring off into the dark as if reading something there that only she could see. She then turned to Sheppard and touched him lightly on the shoulder.

"I must go," she said, addressing them all. "But I shan't be gone long. The Elders wish for me to be your guide while you stay in our village."

Sheppard looked away from the dancers for this. Nodding, it took the Major a couple of seconds to find his voice.

"We won't go anywhere," he assured with an easy smile. Rodney and Ford nodded absently while Teyla sighed, though not at Thea. She looked from the other woman to the men and back again. The smile that lit up Thea's told of the woman's understanding.

Sheppard watched Thea as she turned and disappeared into the dark. The woman intrigued him, but not only for her beauty. She was complex and seemed a little sad somehow but strong nonetheless, the evidence of that strength strapped to her back. Perhaps waiting for Elizabeth to come to this planet would not be such a bad thing after all.

Nearly an hour after Thea had left, the natives seemed to notice that their visitors were not dancing. Though Rodney, Sheppard, and Teyla could not be convinced to participate, Ford had been easily swayed by more than one of the young women residing in the village. He returned to the group on a couple of occasions only to meet with friendly ridicule each time. Eventually he simply did not return which worried Sheppard to some degree. He was not concerned for the young man's safety—Ford would easily be able to take care of himself. Instead, he worried that Ford would forget he was on duty and do something unsavory. Like a nervous parent, pregnancy was the first thing on Sheppard's mind which, he figured, would probably not bode well for a newly developed alliance.

After a moment, however, Sheppard seemed to remember that Ford was quite professional despite his age. He needn't worry about the boy. And so he didn't.

The dancing went on late into the night and the horizon was starting to glow when the villagers finally dispersed. Ford managed to get away from the girls he had been dancing with to return alone to his own tent with the other Atlantians. This made Sheppard smile in spite of himself and he even clapped the young man on the back before they stepped into their tent.

However, the calm that followed in the wake of the Feast did not last for long. Within an hour, the village was awoken by a horrendous _crash!_ and the howl of a wild beast. Sheppard was on his feet in an instant, his weapon already gripped in his hands as he stepped out of the tent and into the confusion outside. Mothers were gathering up their frightened children; members of the Order were preparing to stop whatever danger was coming to them from the forest.

"What's happening, sir?" Came Ford's voice from the dark, his voice heavy with sleep.

"I don't know," Sheppard replied, grabbing Thea's arm as she passed by his gathering team. "Is this one of those dangers from the deep Grare told me about?"

Thea nodded, her eyes wide. "A whole pack of them."

"Where?"

"On the edge of the forest."

"Show me."

"You should stay here, Major," she said as she looked to where her fellows were heading and tugged to free her arm. "The village needs protection here, too."

"My team can take care of the villagers, Thea. I should go where I am most needed."

"Which is here."

"Is this about what you've been hiding from us, Thea?" Sheppard's eyes narrowed as Thea's grew even wider.

"Follow me," she said before bolting off into the dark. Sheppard did not hesitate.

As the two ran in the early morning light, Thea drew her sword from its sheath and Sheppard almost stopped in his tracks. It was unlike any he had ever seen. From the hilt to half way up the narrow blade, the metal was serrated into terrible, jagged teeth. From there to the tip, the blade was flawless and smooth. Sheppard had to admit that it was possibly the most deadly looking weapon he had ever seen, which was saying quite a bit.

Thea glanced back to her companion as his step faltered but did not say a word. Instead, she increased her speed. They were almost to the battle taking place between man and beast.

Again, Sheppard hesitated in his step, actually coming to a halt this time. After everything he had seen since arriving in the Pegasus Galaxy, he had come to assume nothing further could surprise him. Obviously, he thought with a humorless laugh, he was wrong.

The beasts stood eight feet tall when they reared to their hind legs and looked something like a cross between a lion and a bear. Eight still remained while three others lay dead or dying. More than twice that number of Thea's people had been brought down.

He was brought out of his thoughts by one of the creatures who was bearing down on Thea. The young woman looked up into its terrible face as the creature stood to its full height, its jaws wide as it prepared to attack. Sheppard had just bought his weapon up to kill the beast when Thea threw out her hand, presumably in a panicked effort to ward the creature off. Instead, the lion-bear flew nearly thirty feet through the air. Before the creature landed, Thea as was on top of it, drawing her blade through the thick mane and across the creature's throat, killing it. When she looked up, her eyes met with Sheppard's for the briefest of moments before she disappeared once again into the fray. The Major found himself too amazed to even shoot.

Before he knew precisely what was happening, the battle was over. He could see Thea in the dawn's light standing in the middle of the now dead herd, drenched in black blood and looking to her companions as if counting heads. She instantly moved to one man who was struggling to get up while others went to check on the wounded or dead. After putting the man's arm over her shoulders to help him stand, Thea made her way across the dewy grass and towards Sheppard.

When she approached, the look she gave him stalled the question on his tongue. He instantly understood that he had witnessed a people's secret. Outsiders were not supposed to know and he had insisted. Sheppard cursed himself as he went to the pile of bodies in order help. Instead, he was ignored by each and every member of the Order. Even the injured turned to one of their own though he was often closer.

He had made a mistake and a big one at that.

Sheppard did not speak up again until he had made it back to the village. Having caught up with Thea and her slow charge, he waited outside the tent Thea had disappeared into waiting to speak with her once she stepped outside. As he waited, other members of the village paused or slowed in their step, their eyes boring into him, scrutiny in their every feature. Somehow they, too, knew.

When Thea reappeared, she hardly gave Sheppard a glance before walking towards the edge of the village. Sheppard went after her and quickly caught up, grabbing her arm in order to stop her.

"What was that?" He asked. Though he had tried, he could not keep the accusing tone out of his voice.

"What was what?" Thea asked in return, blinking once, twice.

Sheppard waved in the general direction of the field they had just returned from. "That."

"I do not know what you are talking about, Major. Now, if you would be so kind as to release me, I have to report to the Elders." Thea wrenched her arm from Sheppard's grip and started to walk away once again.

"So I'm just supposed to ignore the man behind the curtain?" He called after her.

Thea looked at him over her shoulder, obviously confused by his Earthly reference. However, she did not stop. Sheppard, on the other hand, stayed were he was, his head dropped and a sigh on his lips. He had messed up, or so it seemed. Maybe, he thought briefly, he should just head back to Atlantis and call this planet a failure as well.

The thought was barely through his mind, however, when he remembered what Grare had told him upon their meeting: This planet had not seen the Wraith in seven-hundred years. Even if he had gotten on the native's bad side, he could still go looking for the source of their Wraith-repellent. Anything that could keep the Wraith away for that long would certainly be a help to Atlantis.

With his mind made up, Sheppard headed to the other side of the village to consult with his team. As he moved among the tents, however, Sheppard noticed once again that everyone was looking at him without actually looking at him. A strange sensation came over him as he passed by a tall male warrior and, when Sheppard looked at the man, the warrior simply looked away and the sensation vanished.

Sheppard did not like this one bit. Maybe they should just pack up and go…

"Major!" Teyla's voice broke the silent morning and pulled Sheppard out of his musings. He looked at the woman and allowed himself to be pulled away from the warrior. In hushed tones, Teyla continued, "What happened? The moment the battle died down people started to look at us as if we had done something very wrong."

"It wasn't you," Sheppard said, glancing over his shoulder. "I think I stumbled on something I wasn't supposed to see."

"What do you mean?" Teyla looked around their immediate surroundings, her brow furrowed. Before Sheppard could answer, Rodney and Ford appeared, Rodney speaking his mind, par usual.

"There is something very wrong here, Major. I was standing over there minding my own business when some brat came up and kicked me in the shins. What did you do?"

"Why do you automatically assume this is my fault?"

"Because these things generally are."

Sheppard seemed to consider this before frowning. "I was just telling Teyla that I think saw something I wasn't supposed to see."

"Like what?" Rodney asked, a deep frown pulling at the corners of his mouth.

Lowering his voice even more, Sheppard continued. "When I followed Thea out to where the…things were, I happened to witness her…" he paused for a moment, searching for the right way to put it. The memory seemed wrong, somehow, impossible even.

"Happened to witness her do what, Major?" Rodney's voice rose more than he meant it to. With a quick look around, he repeated himself, quieter this time. "Happened to witness her do what, Major?"

"Throw the beast across the field."

"Well, if it was the size of a cat, I don't see how hard that could be."

Sheppard gave Rodney an incredulous look. "They were as big as bears, Rodney. As far as I could tell, she did it with her mind."

"Well, I was just trying to explain something that I didn't actually witness… Wait, did you say with her mind? That's impossible."

"Hold on," Ford said, getting the attention of the small group. "They can move things with their minds? Are you saying they're like Jedi?"

"Of course not, Ford, that's impossible, too," Rodney replied. Sheppard, on the other hand, seemed to be considering this possibility.

"I have not heard of these Jedi," Teyla said, looking at Rodney. "Who are they?"

"A fictional group of magical warriors from movies we have back on Earth who can move things with their minds," Rodney explained. Teyla still looked confused but Rodney continued nonetheless. "However, since they don't exist these people cannot be like them. Are you sure the bear wasn't standing on some sort of spring loaded platform that caused it to fly across the field."

"Yeah, McKay, I'm pretty sure."

The group was unable to go on, however. Thea had approached and was beckoning to Sheppard.

"Follow me, Major. The Elders wish to speak with you. If you have divulged our secret to your companions then they must come as well. You have stumbled onto a dangerous path, Major, one few return from."

Sheppard swallowed. He rarely got nervous, but this was one of those times. Just what had he discovered? He did not have time to answer his question—not that he had an answer anyway—before Thea insisted that they hurry.

"The Elders are not pleased, Major," was all that she said as they made their way towards the large wooden building at the base of the Great Spire.

Upon crossing over the threshold, Sheppard finally felt the weight of what he had discovered. The air within the building was stifling as the Elders looked down upon him from their perch. It was Master Rehina who spoke first, her tone grave.

"Tell us what it is you saw, Major," the woman said. Sheppard could feel her brown eyes peeling back the layers of his mind and he suddenly lost all will to do anything but obey.

He winced as he felt her probe deeper. Maybe Ford hadn't been so far off with his Jedi comment after all…

"What did you see, Major?" Rehina said, her tone lighter but her words far heavier.

"The battle," Sheppard finally got out. It felt as if the words had been torn from his chest. "And…ah…Thea throwing one of those things across the field."

The moment he said that, he felt the woman withdrawal. Falling to his knees, Sheppard gasped for air and stared at the white-haired woman as she stood. Taking the few steps to the ground, she drew up to Sheppard and put her fingers under his chin, forcing him to look at her. Sheppard hardly had the strength to object.

"You cannot tell anybody of this, Major," she said softly, almost sweetly. He nodded but she grabbed his chin and painfully wrenched his head to the side. "I do not believe you understand. If our secret reaches the Wraith, they will come and we will be powerless against the full force of their navy. We may have the power to repel darts and, if we concentrate hard enough, an entire transport, but not their full company.

"I know that it is you who awoke them, John," she said, releasing his chin and circling him. Sheppard was able to move his head enough to look at the rest of his team. While he had been distracted, they had been bound and gagged and were now laying near the wall with half a dozen of the Order standing over them, swords drawn. "And I know that you seem to have an uncanny way of a sending them right where you don't want them to go. To remedy this you will not be allowed to return to your Atlantis nor will you ever be able to leave this village again. We have ways to make sure that you never contact the Wraith again."

Though he could hardly move, Sheppard snarled and looked at the Elder woman defiantly. "They'll come looking for us, you know, when I don't contact Atlantis again in the morning. Our leader is not one to simply let things like this just be."

"Oh, that will be no problem, Major. You will speak with your leader and you will tell her that things are coming along marvelously with the natives. And if they still choose to send men after you, then let them come," she said upon drawing into his line of sight once again. "We are very adept at making people believe all that we want them to see. Take them away."

Sheppard growled as he was pulled to his feet by two male Warriors. Another hand slipped into his line of sight as a gag was forced between his teeth. This he ignored, however, as Thea was beckoned to Rehina's side. The Warrior bowed low before standing and speaking silent words of praise to the Mother. As she gazed upon the young woman, Rehina's eyes were gentle which did not prepare Sheppard for the force of the Elder woman's backhand that sent Thea to the ground. To her credit, the younger woman did not cry out nor, indeed, did she make a sound. She simply stood and bowed even lower before turning and leaving the council building. Had it not been for the sudden foul smelling rag placed over his mouth and nose, Sheppard would have followed her with his gaze. Instead, he could feel himself slipping headfirst into the deepest dark he had ever experienced.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Oh man, sorry about that. This chapter took ages to write…obviously. But now that my time in Europe is over and I can start watching the show again, the writing will pick up pace. Also, considering I have nothing else to do for the next month until school starts except write and socialize… Well, one can only hope.

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_Chapter Four_

The world blossomed to life in brilliantly painful splotches of colour. Sheppard groaned and pressed his eyelids together if only to block out as much light as possible before attempting to roll over. Even though he did not move very far or very fast, his stomach immediately objected, forcing him to stop moving. The last thing he wanted right now was to be tied up, but since he couldn't avoid that fate, the next worse thing was being tied up and laying in a pool of his own vomit. That would just be unbearable.

As he lay there on his side, his temple pressed into the damp earth beneath him and his eyes shut against the light that was starting to become bearable, Sheppard started to think back on what had happened. To his dismay, he could hardly remember what had landed him in this predicament. There was something about people being able to do things they shouldn't be able to do and then a woman with long white hair standing in nothingness. Growling, Sheppard tried to remember harder, as if it would help clear the muck out of his mind. It didn't work. All that happened was a strengthening of the imposed mental block and silent laughter that echoed through his skull and not in the space he was laying in.

Pressing his lips together out of frustration rather than nausea, Sheppard opened his eyes once again. The spot of light that had recently formed a halo around his head had moved roughly a foot across the floor and was now illuminating somebody's socked foot. Even though Sheppard suddenly realized that his boots, too, were gone, things were looking up (though, admittedly, not by much). Not only was the source of light from the sun (or so he presumed) he wasn't alone in this…place. Teyla was here and by the soft snoring that came from behind him, Rodney was, too. The only person he could not currently account for was Ford. Since the rest of his team was nearby, however, he assumed the young man was not far off, especially since faint rustling was coming from the other side of Teyla that was accompanied by a masculine voice mumbling nothings.

Now that his nausea had settled and he could move his head without feeling the need to empty his stomach, Sheppard attempted to sit up. The dark world spun as he did so, but he was able to change positions nonetheless. Closing his eyes and giving everything a moment to settle, Sheppard slowly cracked his eyes open and glanced around. Just as he suspected, a form lay on the far side of Teyla that was roughly the shape of a full grown man. Beyond Ford, however, there was nothing but the dark. The same could be said when Sheppard glanced to the other side and beyond the unconscious scientist to his left. The only source of light seemed to be the beam that fell across Teyla's ankles that came from a pinpoint source above his head. It was hard to determine the exact height of the ceiling, but it couldn't be too far if the light was as intense as it was.

After assessing the situation, Sheppard's mind immediately shifted to figuring out how to get out of their predicament. He could faintly remember the white-haired woman saying something about contacting Atlantis but his memories were so scrambled that nothing made sense at the moment. Shaking his head, Sheppard tugged at the restraints around his wrists and determined that a thin twine had been used. This would have been all well and good had the twine not tightened slightly so that it was now biting into his skin. And as the twine tightened, Sheppard became acutely aware of his injured hand; pain was coursing its way up his arm and his hand was throbbing.

"Dammit," Sheppard muttered through clenched teeth. "I need that hand."

Assuming that the same twine, knot, whatever, had been used to bind his ankles as well, Sheppard did not test it. He did not need his ankles cut up—that would be detrimental to his escape plans. Not that he had any at the moment, but when he did…

The thought did not progress much further then that as Rodney started to stir. Before Sheppard could warn him about the twine, however, Rodney panicked and started to struggle, crying out as the twine cut into his wrists and drew blood.

"McKay!" Sheppard exclaimed. "Stop moving before you lose your hands."

That stopped the scientist.

"But you're allowed to breathe," Sheppard said after a moment. A deep sigh came through the dark and Sheppard squinted to look at his friend. The beam of light had moved further away from the two men which only proved to make their section of this place darker. It also told Sheppard that he had been awake a lot longer than he thought he had been. Though he did not know this planet, he could faintly remember Thea telling him that, during the summer, they had very long days and very short nights and that it was the opposite case in the winter. Sheppard had suspected that, based on this information, this society was very far north on the planet (prior intell had informed the Atlantis team that this planet had a tilt that was similar to Earth's).

Not that that was of any particular importance at the moment.

Shaking his head once again to clear his mind, Sheppard looked at Rodney. The other man did not look happy in the least and the dirt smudged across his face did not help that image any.

"Where are we, Major?" Rodney's voice took a higher timbre than usual, betraying his fright.

"Some place underground, as far as I can determine." Sheppard said, just coming to that conclusion as he relayed it. "There are no breaks in the walls that suggest a man-made structure and the entire place smells like earth…as in dirt."

"Of course as in dirt. I wasn't going to assume for a moment that we were suddenly back on Earth, Major."

Sheppard simply shrugged. He didn't feel like arguing with the scientist at the moment. Rodney, on the other hand, shot him a look.

"Are you dismissing me?"

Sheppard glanced at Rodney and lifted a brow.

"There's no point in continuing the conversation, McKay. We're not on Earth and we're sitting in dirt. That is obviously clear to the both of us. Now if you would get off the subject and turn your genius towards getting out of here we would all be better off, don't you think?"

McKay looked at the Major, unsure as to whether he had just been complimented or insulted. He chose the former and nodded slowly.

"Of course, with my mind we should be out of here in no time. So, where are we?"

"Why don't you make that your first task?" Sheppard said as Teyla started to stir. Before she could move, Sheppard warned her about the twine and repeated his instructions a moment later when Ford woke.

"Are either of you hurt?" Was his next question. He could faintly see the two of them in the dim light and squinting made things slightly better.

"I am fine," Teyla said as Ford shook his head.

"Just a little roughed up but nothing serious, sir," the younger man assured Sheppard when he caught his commanding officer's scrutinizing look.

"You have a pretty nasty cut on your forehead, Ford. At least it looks nasty, I can't tell in this light."

Teyla, who was closer, turned to inspect the younger man.

"It does not look deep, Major. And it is no longer bleeding. The Lieutenant will be fine unless our captors neglect to clean it in which case it might become infected."

Sheppard nodded as there was nothing to say or do. They couldn't clean it, tied up as they were, so they would have to depend on the Ortians to stave off infection.

The four of them sat there in silence for some time, each thinking of ways to get out of this underground prison. After a length—Sheppard was unsure as to how much time had passed—a great groaning sound echoed through the space and a crescent of light appeared to Sheppard's left and beyond Rodney. They all looked at way as the crescent grew larger, each squinting as more and more light flooded the space.

When the crescent had stopped growing and a roughly circular opening had replaced it, a figure stepped into the center of the light. Though only a silhouette, Sheppard was quite sure who this was. When Master Rehina spoke, Sheppard pressed his lips together, not quite sure how he felt about being correct.

"All awake, I see, and no worse for wear?" Her voice was serene as she stepped deeper into the cavern. "Except the young one, Lieutenant Ford. You woke up, my dear, at the most inopportune moment and had to be taken care of. Unfortunately for you, Kirin was in charge of your person and he is rather rougher than the other Warriors."

Drawing right up to Sheppard, she smiled down at him. "Are you ready to speak with your leader, Major? The Portal opened up several hours ago and we assumed it was your Atlantis looking for you. Still, they have not sent through men to find you so I believe it safe to assume that she is not very worried about you…your Doctor Weir."

Sheppard felt a weight around his shoulders as Rehina spoke to him and though he struggled to lift it, he had no such luck. She was simply too strong. Again, he heard the laughter that echoed nowhere else except within his mind.

"She'll send men for me if you insist on keeping us here," Sheppard struggled to say. He managed to look up at Rehina and gave her his most defiant glare. She simply laughed, out loud this time.

"Not if you tell her that you are fine, she won't. And you are perfectly well, John; we will take very good care of you. In fact, we will clean your boy's wound to show our good will."

"Keeping us prisoner is not a very good way to convince me that you have our best interests in mind, Rehina."

"Oh, don't fool yourself, John. We have _our_ best interest in mind, not yours."

She smiled at him as two men forced him to his feet. A moment later he could feel the twine around his ankles loosen and then fall away. He glanced at his feet in order to get a good look at it but by the time he did, the twine was gone. The man holding his right elbow grinned and, had it not been for the situation, the Ortian's handsome face would have made the expression almost pleasant. Almost.

From then on, Rehina did not say two words to John; or even one, for that matter. She simply led her people through the woods to the Gate, her white dress fluttering serenely around her ankles. She seemed less like a physical being than she did an entity of nature. Wind, perhaps, but the wind that precedes a tempest, not a summer breeze.

As they continued on through the dense forest, Sheppard was surprised that she did not blindfold him until he remembered waking up with scrambled memories that still made little sense in his mind. The thought caused a lump to form in his throat that he could not swallow. If she could do that, what else could she do to them…?

Though he did not wish it, Sheppard dwelled on this for the rest of the trip to the Stargate and by the time they reached their destination he was so caught up in his own thoughts that he did not notice the Ancient object until he was instructed to dial Atlantis. Blinking a few times and giving Rehina a dumb look, he glanced at the DHD, still unsure as to what she had said.

"John," Rehina said in the voice Sheppard could feel rattle through his skull, "Dr. Weir is waiting for you to answer her hails of this morning and the sooner you do it, the better off you will be."

Though he understood her perfectly this time, Sheppard hesitated a moment longer before saying, "You'll need to release me so I can dial Atlantis."

"Of course," Rehina said with a gesture. Sheppard was so surprised by her answer that he barely felt the twine slip away from his wrists. That had never worked before…

Sheppard laughed a humorless laugh that only those in the immediate vicinity could hear. Of course it had never worked in the past. Before now he had definitely not been captured by a people who could use their minds to throw large animals across a field or scramble memories like eggs. This was something completely different.

"I suggest that you stop stalling, John," Rehina said just as John felt his hand move towards the DHD. To his dismay, he could only watch as he dialed Atlantis, completely out of control of his actions. He could hear his voice yelling, screaming at him through the fog in his mind to stop, to fight back. But he couldn't.

Sheppard could only imagine the expressions his teammates might have exhibited as he dialed Atlantis, his own disgust at his complete lack of strength to fight back evident in their eyes even though they were not there. Glancing back at the Gate, he watched in slow motion as the worm hole to Atlantis opened.

"Very good," Rehina said though her lips did not move. Sheppard simply looked at her without expression as he turned on his IDC and tapped his earpiece.

"Atlantis Control, this is Major Sheppard reporting in," he heard himself say. It felt as if he were watching this whole scene from a distance, from some point meters above his head. He knew that Rehina was somehow controlling his actions and, he feared, his words, but he simply could not fight back. He tried with every ounce of his being to take back control of his body, but he could barely move even a finger under his own will. All he could do was watch as things unfolded around him.

"Go ahead, Major," came Elizabeth's voice in his ear.

"Everything is coming along magnificently, Doctor. In fact, the Elders have already been speaking with me about an alliance and they seem to think that it would be very beneficial to both of our societies." Though he was saying the words, they were not forming in his mind. They were coming from somewhere else and he suspected he knew from where. Glancing at Rehina, he felt himself go on. "However, Master Rehina would like us to stay with them a few more days to prove our worth before making any final decisions so your presence will not be needed until then."

"Major?" He could hear the confusion in Elizabeth's voice. "Is everything all right?"

"Of course."

_Elizabeth!_ He screamed.

"You're sure?"

_No!_

"I am trying to appease the wishes of the natives so we can be friends rather than enemies."

"You are aware of our time restraint, aren't you, Major? Though I appreciate what you're doing, you need to be quick about this."

_Help us!_

"I am going as quickly as I can, Doctor." His voice seemed pleasant, jovial even, as if nothing was wrong. "But I do not wish to offend them."

There was a pause and the air around Sheppard almost crackled with anticipation. Slight doubt crossed his mind that did not belong to him before Elizabeth spoke once again.

"Okay, Major. As long as you can assure me that you are working as quickly as you can then you're welcome to continue with the negotiations on your own. However, if you can, try to speed things up. A hasty alliance will suffice for the moment until the Wraith have been dealt with."

"Of course, Doctor."

"Atlantis out."

Sheppard stood there for a moment, blinking, as the wormhole collapsed. He then felt his legs give out beneath him and would have fallen had it not been for the two Ortians who suddenly grabbed his elbows and held him upright. Looking up as Rehina approached, he narrowed his eyes.

"She won't buy it for long, Rehina," he spat. Rehina simply tilted her head to one side.

"No, I suspect that she won't," she conceded after a moment. "But considering the words came from you, she will believe them for longer."

Sheppard could feel a growl rise in his throat but he did not want to give her the pleasure of seeing him so upset as to make such a barbaric sound. The woman's eyes sparkled, however, as if she knew just what he was doing, which made Sheppard bare his teeth.

"You are a magnificent specimen, John, and I am willing to assume that the rest of your people are just as fascinating. It really is too bad that you found out what you did. Our people would have been good for each other." Her smile was gentle as were her words which made them all the more poignant. Reaching out, she laid a hand on the side of Sheppard's face and ran a thumb over the rough stubble that had grown on his jaw. "But that is not the case. You may take him back to his fellows, Kirin."

Stroking his cheek once more, Rehina turned and started to make her way through the clearing and towards her village, an entourage of Warriors following in her wake. As soon as they were gone, Sheppard was pushed to the ground and kicked swiftly in the ribs. The blow forced all of the air out of his lungs and left him choking for air. Before he could quite comprehend what had happened, however, he felt strong hands on his elbows once again and he was being led back into the forest, his mind searching for the event he had just witnessed but suddenly couldn't remember. All that he knew was that he was in pain and that something was terribly wrong.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Ieee… I'm sure y'all don't want to hear excuses about the terrible amount of time it took me to write this chapter. I blame it on taking a creative writing class and having all of my writing time and creative juices being monopolized by that. Yeah. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I realy, really hope I can pick up the pace. Again, sorry and thank you to those who have stuck it out and waited for me to reappear.

---

_Chapter Five_

Elizabeth closed her arms over her stomach as she watched the wormhole collapse. Something was wrong and it was not just her intuition telling her that, it was every fiber of her being. The Major's voice had seemed a little off; he didn't quite sound like himself. However, Elizabeth could not form an explanation either in her mind or on her tongue.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she did not hear Dr. Beckett approach and jumped as he spoke.

"You look perplexed," was all he said. She turned to look at him, her brow raised slightly.

"Did you hear the transmission?"

"Aye," he admitted with a nod. When she did not respond, he tilted his head slightly as if in question. "If you're looking for an opinion on what course of action to take, I'm afraid I wouldn't be much help. I'm only a medical doctor and not very knowledgeable about military matters."

Elizabeth didn't answer immediately and instead gestured for Beckett to follow her into her office. Once they were inside, she circled her desk and leaned heavily on it, her head hanging. Beckett knit his brow.

"Would you like me to find Sergeant Bates, Elizabeth? He's much more qualified to help you in this situation."

"I don't even know what the situation is, Carson," she said at length. "So I don't know if I need a military opinion or an educated guess from someone intelligent."

At the compliment, Beckett straightened his shoulders but felt the blood rise in his cheeks nonetheless. Elizabeth allowed a faint smile to cross her lips.

After a moment, Beckett ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know much about what's going on, but Major Sheppard tends to be quite capable when put in desperate situations."

"I guess you're right," Elizabeth said, glancing back at the Stargate. "But something feels wrong."

"Aye."

"Very wrong."

---

John Sheppard was not a happy camper. The expression on his face betrayed this fact as did the way he answered the few questions his team dared ask him; the cavern had fallen silent after Sheppard nearly took Ford's head off for asking if anything could be done about their situation. This only bothered Sheppard further. He should be more in control of what he was doing and of what he was saying than he was; he was a ranking officer, _the_ ranking officer, and damn good at what he did to boot. He should be able to handle himself in such situations.

Of course, he had never been held prisoner by people who could wipe his memory at a whim before…

Shaking his head of excuses, Sheppard pushed his anger to the back of his mind and looked around. He needed to find some way out of this cavern. There was the slight problem of being tied up and it being night, but he was John Sheppard, he could deal with it.

Or so he told himself.

With a sigh, Sheppard tugged at his restraints one last time. He didn't expect anything different to happen and he barely clenched his teeth as the vine dug deeper into his skin. It was Ford who had discovered that their bindings were made of a vine that grew from a menacing looking weed in the darkest corner of the cavern. How the young man had come by it was something of a mystery since they had few visitors and there was very little usable light each time the natives came and went. Still, Sheppard had seen the plant with his own eyes during their last meal so had no reason to doubt Ford's discovery.

Though they had not been in this cave for long, Sheppard was already beginning to lose track of time. Their only indication of the passage of time was the beam of light that crossed, without fail, the floor of their prison. It had made its journey twice now and Sheppard was beginning to wonder just how many more trips he would witness before this whole ordeal was done and over with.

Just as this thought surfaced in his mind, the great stone that blocked their way began to move to the side. Sheppard looked up from where he sat, his brow furrowed; this was not a time of day the natives usually chose to visit. Confused, Sheppard watched warily as a faint silhouette filled the opening.

Being the only one awake, Sheppard was the only one who noticed what was going on. The stone had been silent which led Sheppard to believe that a great amount of force had been exerted to see that no one would be woken. Too bad for whoever this was that Sheppard had insisted on guard duty while the others slept just in case anything happened. And now that something was happening, Sheppard was glad he had started the watches despite their captivity.

Without a word, the figure stole across the cavern to kneel next to Sheppard. He instantly recognized Thea in the dim moonlight that found its way in through the opening left by the boulder. After getting over his initial shock, Sheppard's eyes narrowed in accusation.

"What are you doing here?" He whispered harshly. Thea simply brought a finger to her lips and glanced towards the opening.

"I am on guard tonight," she explained. "And tomorrow as well."

Sheppard didn't understand, a fact which he quickly vocalised. "Are you trying to tell me something, Thea?"

He said her name as if it were something vile on his tongue and her recoil made him smile slightly. He was not a cruel man, just a tired and angry one.

After a long moment, Thea tilted her head to one side as she stared at Sheppard for a long moment. "You mean to say that you do not know what Rehina intends to do to you?"

"I've never met your people before," Sheppard said, exasperated. "Which means that I have no idea what your customs and punishments are."

Thea's jaw dropped slightly and lay slack for a moment before looking over her shoulder, obviously nervous about something. "I don't have much time. The other guard will be waking soon."

"What's going to happen to us, Thea?" Sheppard asked, louder this time.

"Rehina is going to wipe your memory and write a new one. You are to become an Ortian with the belief that you have always lived on this planet and never anywhere else."

"_What!_" Sheppard was barely able to control the roar that threatened to tear his chest in two. "She plans on doing what?"

"Rehina is going to…"

"No," Sheppard cut her off, "I heard you the first time. But why are you telling me this?"

At that moment, Thea stood and looked over her shoulder.

"I must go, Sheppard," she said, turning on her heel and leaving his question unanswered.

Before she had even left the cave, the stone started to slide and Thea had just enough of a gap left to squeeze through before it rolled completely into place. Sheppard let out a long sigh and kicked at Rodney. It was his turn to take watch, even if Sheppard's shift was barely half over. The scientist awoke with a cry and rolled over while taking care that his arms did not move too much on their own—out of the four captives, Rodney's wrists were in the worst shape.

"Issit time?" Rodney asked, opening his eyes with difficulty.

"No," Sheppard replied honestly.

"Then why did you wake me up?"

"Because I need to think."

"That's a novel idea," Rodney grumbled as he looked at Sheppard out of the corner of his narrowed eyes. After as moment, he continued. "About what?"

"Nothing that concerns you," Sheppard said, turning his back on Rodney and looking at the stone barrier that separated him from freedom. With the new piece of information provided by Thea, Sheppard had to find a way to get his team off this planet as quickly as possible. He couldn't rely on Elizabeth this time.

---

Another day passed without any extraordinary events. Food came, the sunbeam traced a path across the ground and over Sheppard's outstretched legs, Rodney complained. At one point Sheppard almost told his team of his late night visit but decided in the end to keep it to himself. He was unsure exactly how much their guards could hear, be it spoken out loud or simply thought. That being the case, he did not even turn the subject over in his mind. He just let it lie.

That, of course, was torture.

He wanted to think about what Thea could possibly have meant by telling him of their fate. Was it a psychological trick to get him to tell them something? Was it genuine concern and kindness…? No, he told himself when he found his mind wandering towards the previous night, no.

It was not until long after the sun beam had disappeared and even longer after it had grown completely dark outside that Sheppard finally let himself think about what Thea had said. But he did not get a chance to think long. The moment her face flashed through is mind, the stone started to move. He could barely see the movement (for tonight was darker than the last) and could only just feel it vibrate under his legs. Though he could sense the eyes of his teammates on him, he did not look at them, only at the stone that moved before him.

Just as the stone stopped, a cloud must have moved and revealed moon for she was suddenly illuminated where she stood.

Thea.

He could hear the name whispered among his teammates but ignored them still as she approached him and knelt by his side. He opened his lips to speak but she placed a finger over them as she unsheathed a cruel looking dagger. Sheppard's heart started to pound in his chest.

"Do not worry, Sheppard." Her whisper was rough as if she had been yelling.

"What are—"

"Shhh…"

Now that his heart was in his throat, he couldn't have spoken even if he was determined to say something, anything. All he could do was watch as Thea stepped behind him. As soon as she was out of sight and the only indication he had of her presence was her breath in his ear, Thea grabbed his wrist and quickly slit the vine that had rubbed his skin raw.

Sheppard gasped. He was unsure whether it was in relief or in surprise, but he quickly regained himself as Thea cut through the vine around his ankles. He stood. Boots. He had no… Thea pointed towards the entrance.

"They are not yours but you should find them suitable."

Before he moved towards the small pile of items, he looked at Thea.

"What, exactly, are you doing?"

"I am freeing you; I thought that obvious." She looked up at him after cutting the vines binding Rodney's wrists.

"Yes, but… Why?"

"We do not have time to discuss it right now."

John furrowed his brow. "How do I know you're not leading us into a trap, then?"

Thea straightened halfway through cutting Ford's bindings. "You are the man who will lead this galaxy to a future without the Wraith, John. I cannot let Rehina wipe your mind. You will return to your Atlantis safely."

Sheppard blinked; his team turned to look at him. Thea, on the other hand, moved from Ford to Teyla without looking up. "You had better gather your things, Major, we do not have very much time before the guard wakes."

Shaking his head, John moved across the cavern to the small pile he could barely make out. Sure enough, there were boots, several daggers and—John smiled—two P-90s. He quickly claimed one as his own, as well as a dagger and a pair of boots. As soon as his team was free, they each gathered weapons and boots for themselves and even though it took all of two minutes, John was starting to grow anxious. He still wasn't exactly sure what Thea had in mind, but something told him it was better than Rehina's plan.

Hell, he thought, anything was better than Rehina's plan.

"Are you ready, Major?" Thea asked as she sheathed her dagger.

"I guess I have to be," Sheppard replied, rolling his shoulders. Thea nodded and led the way out of the cave. Once everyone was out, Thea held out her hand and Sheppard watched as the large stone started to move back into place. He glanced at his team over his shoulder as Thea dropped her hand.

"Let's go."


	6. Chapter 6

A gift for the New Year. Enjoy ; )

_---_

_Chapter Six_

At first they ran.

The dense trees made it difficult but Thea kept up a rapid pace nonetheless. She did not seem to mind the whip-like branches and vines that were cutting cheeks and tearing clothing. In fact, she danced away from them before they could catch her.

There was no moonlight this deep in the forest.

As they ran, Rodney kept up a constant stream of muttered complaints about this and that concerning the forest, the natives, the fact that he was a scientist and not an Olympic long distance runner. He was not cut out for this. Everyone ignored him.

And then it started to rain. The canopy was too dense for the rain to penetrate but the sound was deafening as it poured down on the needles and leaves high above their heads. Sheppard was pleased; the rain cloaked the sound of their escape.

It was not until Rodney ran into a tree that Thea let up her relentless pace. Though it was only his shoulder that had come in contact with the trunk, he complained as if he had broken something.

"This," he said between his gasps for air, "this is why you do not run through a forest in the middle of the night. Somebody could get hurt."

Sheppard regarded him, his hands on his sides, his breathing nowhere near as labored as Rodney's. "This is also a good example of when to use your eyes for reasons other than staring at a computer screen."

Rodney looked exasperated. "I can't see when there is no light to speak of, Major."

"Stop exaggerating, McKay. You should eat more carrots."

"What?"

"Carrots. Eat them."

Rodney gave Sheppard a dirty look as he rubbed at his sore shoulder. "Ow."

Thea, who had been silently listening to the exchange between the two men from a distance, suddenly looked to the trees. She did not search the foliage with her strange eyes; instead, she tilted her head, listening. Sheppard watched the woman as he moved to stand next to her.

"We are being stalked," she said so that only he could hear. Sheppard released the safety on his weapon and started to lift it when Thea stayed his hand with one of her own. "No, there is no need for that."

Sheppard gave her a hard stare. "What's out there?"

Thea did not say a word.

"Thea?" Sheppard said through his teeth; even he could hear them now.

"We must go. Now." Her voice wavered. "I've led you too close to the border."

"What are you talking about?" Sheppard glanced back at his team just as Teyla was helping Rodney stand.

"We do not war with the Wraith, Major, but we certainly war with ourselves. News of your arrival must have made its way to the Skygge and their leaders are probably wondering why you chose to come through our Portal rather than theirs."

All eyes turned to Thea as she said this.

"Two Gates?" Rodney's voice cracked. "Do they use theirs often?"

"Yes."

"You know this for sure." Rodney looked ready to skip.

"I do not lie, Doctor. There are two Portals on our world that can be used to come and go." Thea turned her ear to the trees again. "But now is not the time to educate you on the history of my people. We must go before the scouts choose to strike. They usually do not dare cross into our land just as I would not wander into theirs. At least not while they watch."

Sheppard could just make out Thea's wry smile in the dark.

"What do you mean?"

"Once your disappearance is discovered, my people will be watching our Portal like hawks. In fact, Rehina has already instructed a guard of four to watch it day and night. The Skyggen Portal is your only hope to get off of this planet alive. Come now, we must leave." Thea turned the moment she said this and started to run through the dark forest once again. Sheppard exchanged glances with his team before following in Thea's mercilessly fast wake.

They continued at this pace for another hour and only stopped when Rodney fell so far behind they lost him in the trees. Sheppard, Teyla, and Ford leaned forward on their knees as Thea retraced their steps to retrieve Rodney. Even as she walked away, her breath was normal. It was as if she could run all night without her body giving out or her breath growing short. Sheppard was more than slightly jealous. He had endurance, yes, but nothing in comparison to this strange woman.

As he turned to watch her go, Ford spoke up for the first time since leaving the cavern.

"Do you trust her, sir?"

"Not entirely, no," Sheppard replied. "But I don't think we have much of a choice at the moment."

"If you don't mind me asking, sir: why?"

"Do you know where the Stargate is?" Sheppard straightened and looked to the east. They were near the edge of the forest and the sun was just starting to come up. He smiled at the glow.

"I… No."

Sheppard looked at the younger man. "Precisely. She knows where two are, Ford. Two. That's twice as many locations any of us know about."

"He has a point, Major," Teyla said. "She could be leading us into a trap and none of us would know."

Sheppard glanced back at the sunrise and pressed his lips together. "I suppose, but it's a little early to make accusations, don't you think? She did just free us from imprisonment and a memory wipe after all. Give her a chance." He paused. "Look, here she comes with McKay."

He turned away from his companions who exchanged glances behind his back. Though Sheppard was acting his normal, confident self regarding getting his team out of trouble, there was something different about his demeanor in general. He may not have noticed it himself, but his team was certainly aware of the change. Neither Ford or Teyla voiced their concern, but both were worried that Thea was somehow affecting Sheppard. They had seen how her people could manipulate minds and they did not like the amount of trust Sheppard seemed to be placing in their guide. In fact, he smiled as she approached even though he addressed Rodney rather than Thea.

"You all right, McKay?"

Rodney glared at him. "After you force me to run through a forest in the middle of the night and after I nearly kill myself twice, you only ask me if I'm_ all right_? No, I am not all right. I can barely breath, I can't feel my extremities, my legs feel like they are going to fall off and…and…" He took in a deep breath and gestured towards himself. "And my lungs are on fire. I'm just going to go sit over there for a moment."

Rodney limped to a fallen log and practically collapsed as he tried to sit down. Thea turned her ear towards the scientist before moving to Sheppard's side.

"We should not rest for long," she said. "We are not yet far enough away from my village or the borders of my land."

Sheppard nodded. "We'll have to take it slow for a while, though. He's annoying, but if he dies, I die. He's too valuable back on Atlantis to lose."

Thea tilted her head towards Sheppard and smiled lightly. "You still haven't told me about Atlantis, Major. Is it as beautiful as the legends say it is?"

"And how beautiful is that?"

"Beyond description."

"Ah." He glanced at her. "Well, it's describable, but finding words is sometimes hard."

Thea chuckled. "I would like to see it someday. When I was young and before I started my serious training, I often tried to imagine what the city of the Ancestor's was like but I could never form an image in my mind. Perhaps their city was like the spires that touch our skies but gleaming instead of black and burned. I have known nothing except wood and masonry construction and cannot even begin to imagine a city of metal. It must glow in the sunlight."

It was Sheppard's turn to smile. "You seem to have quite an imagination."

"The Master's did not like my daydreaming. They believed that it distracted from my Warrior training."

"Sounds like my father," Sheppard said under his breath. Thea frowned and opened her mouth to ask what he meant but Sheppard was Faster. "But we should move on."

"Yes," Thea said with a nod. "It will be harder to move in the daylight, especially now that we have nearly run out of trees but I think we will manage for now. My people have endurance, it's true, but we have put a good deal of distance between our current position and that of my village. We still have a distance to go, but if we continue to move, I believe they won't be able to catch up."

"You believe?"

"I have never had to outpace my own people, Major, nor have I had to chase escaped prisoners, especially ones led by a trained Warrior, so I do not know how relentless their pace will be in order to catch us. I do know, however, that Rehina will not stop until we are caught or dead." Thea tucked a number of her thin dreadlocks behind one ear as she turned that ear to the deep parts of the forest.

"Perhaps you'll have the chance to visit Atlantis after all," Sheppard said as he glanced that way.

"That would be nice," Thea replied, the soft tone to her voice now gone. "Gather your fellows; we must move. I believe the Skygge are still watching us."

She turned to Sheppard and put a hand on his arm as if to say something more. When she didn't speak, he looked into her eyes and had the sudden suspicion that she wasn't really seeing him. An odd chill crept up his spine as he watched her brow furrow in concentration and her eyes dart back and forth. It almost felt as if she was actually seeing his face for the first time. Sheppard shivered in spite of himself and took a step back. Thea did not protest as he backed away from her touch but seemed saddened by his reaction. She lowered her hand and turned away.

"Rodney," Sheppard called as he started towards the man, almost tripping over a moss covered log in the process. Ford, who was standing near Rodney, watched his superior closely. "Rodney, get up, time to go."

"Already?" Rodney complained. "Can't I have a few more minutes to let my lungs miraculously regenerate?"

"No," was Sheppard's stern reply as he held out an arm to assist Rodney. And then, "But if you want to be captured again and probably killed, you are welcome to stay put."

Rodney frowned and gripped Sheppard's forearm as he hauled himself off the log. The Major winced slightly and shook out his injured hand once Rodney let go. In the days since leaving Atlantis the bruises had yellowed and the constant ache had gone away but certain things (such as helping a chubby scientist stand) still sent a dull flash of pain up his arm. Not only that, but each time he drew in a breath, he was enveloped in pain from the kick he barely remembered receiving. Rubbing at his bruised ribs, Sheppard glanced towards the meadow beyond Thea where the rain was still coming down hard. As she turned towards him, Sheppard turned quickly away.

"Follow me," she said, turning back towards the clearing. Her voice held no emotion but her expression was hard. "We have a ways to go yet."

"How far away is this other Gate?" Sheppard asked.

"I could reach it in a little less than two days alone while running at top speed but considering both our path and Doctor McKay, it may take several days more than that." Thea did not turn to face the Atlantis team. "We will be traveling in roughly a direct line towards the Portal while staying within the borders of the Himmelmark and away from Skyggen land until crossing the border is no longer avoidable. Treacherous obstacles await us."

Teyla frowned. "Why go to such great lengths to help us?"

"I have already told Major Sheppard why his life warrants this amount of effort on my part and I can only assume that the rest of you are invaluable to the fight against the Wraith since he chooses to travel with you."

"Yes, but why use a Stargate that is difficult to reach instead of one that is nearby. Certainly we can take care of four guards—"

"If I kill my own people, I will have no chance to atone my actions. I am facing exile as it is but assisting the savior of our galaxy without Himmel bloodshed is a redeemable offense. But my decision to travel to another Portal is not for my own selfish reasons, it is for you." Thea turned her strange eyes on Sheppard. "Rehina knows of your fate, John. She has seen it in her dreams. She knows your face better than any other person on this planet."

"Then why was she planning on wiping our memories?" Sheppard asked, anger leaking into his words.

"As the Grand Elder and the leader of our people, she is bound to the rules of our land. She cannot make an exception, even for you. She consulted the Mother and her council for a very long time before coming to a final decision." Thea paused and Sheppard was about to ask why Rehina had made the choice she had when Thea continued. "She only chose your fate because she believes there is another who can save us from the Wraith."

"How do you know all of this?" Sheppard demanded. He did not get an answer, however, as Thea drew her sword and spun around. At first, Sheppard thought that he had somehow stepped over the line but when a branch snapped above his head, he knew it wasn't him. Sheppard was just bringing his own weapon to bear when he suddenly found himself on the ground watching a dart _swoosh_ through the air where his head had just been. Blinking, Sheppard started to get up when Thea demanded that he stay on the ground, which he did without question.

Thea closed the distance between them and stood near Sheppard's feet, searching the trees, her head tilted and listening for something.

Silence descended.

It was just when Sheppard realized that he was holding his breath that Thea thrust her sword into the earth and reached for the trees with both hands. She gripped at the air and made as if jerking something from the trees. And, in fact, she did. A man fell from a high branch in a nearby tree and sent a number of leaves into the air as he hit the ground. Sheppard stood as Thea held out one hand towards the man; with the other, she sheathed her weapon. The man she had pulled from the trees could barely move under Thea's influence.

"We have remained standing for too long," Thea said as she approached the other man, Sheppard at her side. "The Skyggen scouts have caught up to us."

Sheppard nodded as he regarded the lean man lying at his feet. He, too, had strange eyes that did not seem to focus, just as Thea had. Still, Sheppard could not shake the feeling that this man was watching them all very closely.

"Himmel," the man growled as blood started to trickle from between his lips. Thea frowned.

"Did your masters send you?"

The man coughed and spat a glob of blood and saliva at Thea's feet.

"You don't have much time left," Thea continued. "I could ease your passing if you tell me what I want to know."

"You have already killed me, Himmel, do not make me betray my people as you did," the man said with a laugh. That action, however, only made him cough more. Thea's only reaction was a slight smile as she kneeled next to the man and placed her hand on his chest. The Skygge started to wheeze.

"What makes you think I betray my people?" she said softly. He gestured weakly at Sheppard.

"They are alive. They have their memories. They know who they are," he said forcefully even though his voice was now barely above a whisper. The Skygge drew in a shaky breath. "Your Elders do not let that happen. How many minds have they wiped in recent years? How many have you wiped? You know; we know. The truth haunts you, Warrior."

Thea slid her hand to the man's cheek as she leaned over to speak in his ear.

"Do not think you know me." She paused as the man's breathing became labored. "Now go peacefully to the Mother, Warrior of the Skygge."

"Praise to the Mother," the man said with his final breath. At length, Thea gently closed his eyes and stood, turning to Sheppard as she did so.

"There are more in the trees but they will not bother us if we leave right now. Doctor McKay," she said, turning towards the man, "you have had sufficient time to heal. We will not run, I promise you that, but we will need to move quickly, quicker than you may like but you musn't complain. The faster we move, the faster you can go home and the faster you can stop the Wraith." She started to move away from the dead man. "Stay close, that is all I ask."


	7. Chapter 7

So, this story suddenly got really hard to write. My plot-bunny seems to have hopped off to hide in a hole and I cannot seem to coax him back out with all the carrots in the world. Damn his cute little bunny ears.

Oh, and if anyone is curious, Thea's language is bastardized Danish. Apparently, I loved the country so much I found the need to destroy its language to my own creative and evil needs.

And I really want to write Ronan, now. Too bad this takes place before his time on Atlantis…

---

_Chapter Seven_

Thea slowed their rapid pace once they were in the plains. Though they were out in the open, few would be able to ambush the small group without being seen for a kilometer. The grass they trekked though was tall, true, but it rippled under the slightest breeze and would instantly give away the position of any creature, man or animal. Thea had assured them that anyone approaching would be seen but Rodney, always the optimist, did not believe a word she said.

"First off," he said for perhaps the tenth time, "it's raining which has greatly compromised the visibility factor of being able to see things. Second, the fog—"

"Be quite, McKay," Sheppard growled. He could sometimes deal with Rodney's endless stream of complaints. Now, however, was not one of those times. Glancing over his shoulder at the man, he quickly turned his attention back to the infinite grasslands.

For the moment, they were standing on the top of a small bluff, chewing on energy bars and waiting for the rain to let up. They had been doing this for maybe three-quarters of an hour and Sheppard was starting to grow anxious about remaining in the same spot. He didn't let his companions know this, of course, but he was restless nonetheless. The rain, however, hampered their ability to move on. This was no spring rain. Oh no. This was coming-down-in-sheets-soak-you-to-the-bone rain. The leaves above their heads could barely withstand the force of the weather and were quite literally dropping off the tree as if it were autumn. To say the least, it was not pleasant.

After another five minutes of enduring his own anxiety, Sheppard turned to Thea.

"You said these showers generally didn't last very long," he said harsher than he intended; he didn't apologize.

"Generally," Thea said with barely a glance in his direction. "They have been known to last for half a day."

"Great," Rodney muttered. "That would have been nice to know when we stopped."

Thea turned fully to the scientist and tilted her head so that her right ear was more or less directed at Rodney. "I don't see what difference it would have made, Doctor, to tell you that when we first sought the shelter of this tree. I truly believed that this would be a quick summer shower and that we would be on our way some time ago. However, I do not have the abilities to correctly predict the weather and was quite obviously wrong. I do apologize and assure you that you are not the only one who is not happy about our situation. Your major, in particular, is quite ready to leave this spot."

This got a scowl from Sheppard. He was starting to get used to Thea's special abilities but he didn't like them now anymore than he had before, especially the mind reading. His team did not need to know about his restlessness. It wasn't good for moral. Kicking a rock in frustration, Sheppard turned without saying a word, stepped to the very perimeter of the tree, and stuck his hand out in the storm.

"I think it might be slowing down," he said without disguising the growl in his voice. "Maybe we should think about getting a move on before the Skooter—"

"Skyggen," Thea interjected. "The People of the Shadow."

"Sgu… Skyggen," Sheppard said, struggling with the pronunciation, "Before _they_ can catch up to us."

"They would not venture so far into our land, major, especially in the middle of the day. We have left their border and therefore pose no further threat to them for now. They are interested in you," she said, pointing at Sheppard, "but they will not come after you, not when there is a village in the vicinity."

"A village!" Rodney stood up, his anger quite obvious now. "As in warmth and food and real shelter?"

"And people, Rodney," Teyla said, speaking up for the first time since they paused. She put a hand on Rodney's shoulder in a calming gesture. "We are fugitives now, though I don't know how far news has spread of our escape."

As she said this, she gave their guide a significant glance, one that Thea apparently did not pick up on even though she was facing Teyla. She did, however, pick up the meaning in Teyla's words.

"I have given the village a wide berth, so there is no need to fear. They will know of my treason by now and will be quick to act should I make my presence known. Come now, the rain is letting up as Major Sheppard has said. We have many kilometers to go before we reach a safe place to camp for the night." She turned. "And if we do not make it to De Sarnlande—The Scabbed Lands—by night fall we will keep going until we do. From there we will be able to pass into Skyggemarke without being detected."

Sheppard glanced at Rodney, expecting a protest. When none came, he turned back to Thea. "The Scabbed Lands, then."

Thea nodded once as she removed a thong of leather from her belt in order to tie her thin dreadlocks behind her head. A few instantly fell from the strap to frame her face, but Thea left them where they were. Once done, Thea turned from the group and stepped out from under the tree.

Though still quite foggy, it was hardly raining anymore and was actually starting to get rather warm. The sun could not break through the fog, but it certainly was warming up the air. In time, Sheppard found that he had to remove his jacket and the rest of his team quickly followed suit. Thea, on the other hand, remained in her cotton tunic though it was now damp for the fog that hung in the air.

The small group traveled in silence for several hours after leaving the shelter of the tree. In this time, the seemingly endless plain slowly gave way to a slightly more rocky terrain. Stooping over, Sheppard picked up a small rock and tossed it up in the air before examining it.

"What exactly are the Scabbed Lands, Thea?"

"A series of small canyons in the eastern most part of our land. It looks as if the land has been torn apart, hence the name."

"Could it be volcanic?" Sheppard continued.

"Perhaps," she conceded, "but the pumice you are holding is from an old volcanic plain to the north of us."

Sheppard answered only with a raised brow just as Rodney drew up to his side.

"How does she even know where we're going? I can't see more than twenty feet and she's been making subtle adjustments to our course for the last hour."

"How do you know that?" Sheppard shot Rodney a glance out of the corner of his eye. Rodney held up the life sign detector.

"I discovered another use for our little friend a couple of hours ago." He pressed a button to switch the display from what Sheppard was used to, to one that resembled a map. It was rough, but Sheppard was able to make it out nonetheless.

"How does that even work? There's no satellite…"

Rodney shrugged. "I wouldn't be surprised if it can pick up on local landmarks as we walk and place them in their correct relationship to each other but I haven't seen another device like this so I could be wrong." He laughed slightly. "But what are the odds of that? Anyway, if you notice, there is very little defined space in front of us, which means it is a localized process. It's fascinating, actually."

"For once I think you might be right."

"I'm always right."

Sheppard gave the scientist a look.

"Except when I'm wrong…which doesn't happen very often."

"Of course not, Rodney." Sheppard chuckled slightly in spite of himself and picked up his pace to catch up with the rest of the small group.

They were about to pass between two very tall rocks that were looming out of the thick fog when Thea paused. She held up her hand for the rest of the group to halt as she continued forward. Taking a sharp right, the woman bounded up a steep hill and disappeared in the fog. Sheppard and Teyla exchanged looks as they stood there in silence with no idea what had spooked their guide.

Thea returned a moment later, a frown curving her lips.

"I believe that a group of hunters rests on the far side of the initial pass," she said in a low voice. "If not for the Warrior who leads them, I would not think twice about passing them in such close quarters, which presents us with quite a problem. The Warrior and I were close once, but I do not know how he will react to my presence considering the circumstances of my betrayal."

"I take it there is no other way to get to the other side?" Sheppard closed his arms over his chest and scowled.

"Only if you want to scale several dozen meters of vertical wall," Thea said.

Rodney huffed. "Typical."

"We are very far from your village," Teyla interjected. "You are sure villages this far abroad will know of us? You implied earlier that they would be, but is it really true?"

Thea's nod was grave. "News travels fast, as you well know, and though the villagers may not know of recent events, the Warriors surely will, though not in so many words as it takes to tell the story. They will know of my treason and that is enough."

The Warrior woman turned from them as if to look to the passage but Sheppard could see the pain in her eyes. Though he did not fully trust the woman, he felt his heart going out to her. Sheppard could only begin to imagine how much she must have sacrificed to free his team.

"Is there nothing we can do to avoid detection?" Teyla continued, bringing Sheppard out of his thoughts.

Thea did not speak right away. At length, she turned back to the Atlantis team and took in a deep breath. "We have no choice but to take the Østervej." Pause. "Perhaps, if luck is with us, I am wrong and this Warrior has not heard of your escape. Let us hope that I am wrong. Come."

Thea hesitated as they approached the two looming rocks, her head tilting back as she crossed the threshold to the dark passageway. Sheppard and his team followed a moment later and were sheathed in utter blackness within meters of stepping under the rocks.

Sheppard paused as the darkness overtook him and reached to activate the light on his weapon. Before he could throw the switch, however, he felt a hand on his.

"We would do well to not announce our presence to the other Warrior, major," came Thea's voice out of the darkness. "You will have light enough from overhead once your eyes grow used to the darkness. Do not be so quick to rely on your technology, especially when your body is a highly adaptive instrument."

Sheppard furrowed his brow but respected Thea's request. He was starting to wonder things about Thea from the way she favored her ears over her eyes to the way she had just referred to sight. He could not quite form an hypothesis as of yet as the concept was simply beyond his line of reasoning, but he was getting there.

Sure enough, within the first five minutes of their very slow journey through the rocky passage, Sheppard was able to make out the shapes of his comrades in the dark. The light source was far above their heads in a nearly continuous, albeit very narrow, strip where the rocks did not quite meet. This connection to the sky was all Sheppard needed as reassurance but Rodney was not reacting to the enclosed space quite as well. To say that Rodney was freaking out would be a little extreme, but he was certainly jumping each and every time a rock tumbled from where had once been sitting. At one point, he even questioned the safety of the passageway but was only met with a sharp click of Thea's tongue, indicating silence.

The small group crept along like this for ten more minutes or so before Thea held up her hand once again. She beckoned Sheppard to her side and pointed to where a great deal of light washed one wall of the cavern in harsh light. Blinking, Sheppard narrowed his eyes.

"I take it that's the way out?" he said just above a whisper.

"Ja," she replied. "And the group is just beyond that, resting. You and I will go find out how close they are and if passing them without detection is possible. I know these lands well; perhaps the Mother will be with us and the hunters will be on their way shortly which means that we can follow undetected in their wake."

"One question before we go, Thea. How is it that you can detect the other Warrior but he can't detect us?"

"For one," Thea said, her accent heavy as she whispered, "we are in the far reaches of our territory and these outlying villages have few Warriors stationed in them at any given time—two, usually, so he is not expecting another Warrior to be in the immediate vicinity since one must stay with the village at all times. Besides that, we are taught how to shield ourselves from others with the Mother's Gift. Hiding the entire group is taxing, it's true, but I am more than willing to do it if it ensures your safety."

"You don't have to do this for us," Sheppard said. "We've found our way out of more desperate situations than this too many times to count now. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate what you're doing for us, but I feel as if we're wracking up a huge debt to you that, in all likelihood, we won't be able to repay."

"Ridding the galaxy of the Wraith is more than payment enough, John," she replied softly.

"No pressure or anything, right?"

"I do not know what you mean."

Sheppard sighed. "Never mind."

Thea regarded the major for a short moment before she nodded towards the opening. "Come. We must move swiftly but cautiously."

Sheppard only nodded and followed Thea as she moved silently towards the opening. It was not a long distance from where they stood to where they needed to be, but their pace seemed to lengthen it. Though Sheppard was used to sneaking around due to his career, the sound of a ticking clock had taken up residence in the back of his mind. The Wraith were practically upon Atlantis and he was stuck on a planet halfway across the galaxy, running for his life and without a way to tell Elizabeth that he was coming as quickly as possible.

Lost in his thoughts, Sheppard did not see Thea's hand come up in her now familiar signal to stop and nearly barreled right into her. He caught himself in the nick of time, thankfully, but stumbled over his own feet nonetheless. Thea's body stiffened in response to the near collision but she did not turn.

"I believe they are nearer than I had hoped they would be," Thea said instead. "And they have hounds."

"I take it that's not a good thing."

Thea didn't respond.

"Thea…" Sheppard drawled.

At length, Thea looked over her shoulder. "He knows that we are here."

Before Sheppard had a proper chance to respond, a giant of a man stepped into the cave, followed by two fox-like creatures that were comically small in comparison. The man stopped as soon as he located Thea and Sheppard in the dark and straightened to his full height, his fists on his hips. Just as it was with Thea, Sheppard could feel that this man was watching him very closely without even glancing in his direction. In fact, the man did not seem to be looking at anything in particular, which only strengthened Sheppard's growing theory about Thea (and, as it turned out, the rest of her people as well). Not that he had the time to be theoretical at the moment. He had a very large and apparently very dangerous threat to deal with and he was standing close enough to Thea to feel the muscles in her back and shoulders grow tense as if preparing for a fight to know that she was very aware of the same.

"Thea," the man said.

"Kale," she responded.

Sheppard looked back and forth between the two Warriors as sweat broke out on his brow.

This was not good.


	8. Chapter 8

Thanks for the comments, all! And for those who have questions, they will soon have answers. You'll have to wait until they come in story form, but they are on their way, I promise.

And a very basic translation guide to my bastardized Danish/Ortian language:

_De Sarnlande_: The Scabbed Lands. Actually roughly translates to "the wound land" if you remove the n and the e and ignore Danish grammar (which I am).  
_Østervej_: Eastern way, literally. Used here as "Eastern passage" or "Eastern road".  
_Ja_: (ya) Yes  
_Jo_: (yo) Yes  
_Skygge_: Shadow; the enemy  
_Himmel_: Sky; Thea's people  
_Himmelmarke_: The name of Thea's country  
_Eng dal:_ Meadow Valley

---

_Chapter Eight_

Thea's shoulders straightened as she lifted her chin and spoke to Kale. Sheppard could see that her hand was hovering just over the hilt of her dagger now that he had taken a step back, the sight of which caused him to grip his P-90, ready to bring it to bear if asked.

In the time of the brief conversation between Thea and Kale, the other members of Sheppard's team had joined him. Though none spoke, they all watched the interaction carefully, not exactly sure what was going on as the two Ortians continued to speak in their native tongue.

There was a sudden pause in the conversation and the air grew thick with anticipation. Though neither Warrior truly held the gaze of the other, they stood there in silence, waiting for the other to move. This persisted for several very long moments before Kale took a step towards Thea and the Atlantis group. Sheppard reacted instantly and brought his weapon up only to find it sliding across the floor of the cavern a moment later, ripped out of his hands as it was by Thea. He was about to protest when Kale smiled widely and enfolded Thea in his arms, his voice now soft.

"Bror," Thea said, her head nestled against Kale's shoulder. Sheppard exchanged looks with Teyla before turning back to the apparently happy reunion.

Clearing his throat, he addressed Thea. "Is there something we need to know?"

The woman started as if she had forgotten the Atlantis team was standing only a few meters away and stepped back from the large man. She turned to face the others, Kale still looming just behind her. Slight color rose in her cheeks as she tugged at the hem of her tunic; this was the first time Sheppard had seen their guide act as something other than a trained warrior. In fact, Thea looked embarrassed.

"Kale and I share a father," she said at length. "And we fostered together before our training took us in opposite directions. I have not seen him in a very long time."

Sheppard opened his mouth to say something significant but all he could manage was, "Oh."

Regaining herself, Thea straightened her back and frowned slightly. "You have nothing to fear from him, major. He is big but kind of dumb."

Kale said something gentle that caused Thea to smile as she turned her cheek in his direction.

"Uh huh," Sheppard responded. Glancing again at his team, he closed the distance between himself and Thea and took her by the elbow. Kale stiffened but a few words from Thea calmed him as she allowed herself to be led away.

"Are you sure you can trust him, Thea?" Sheppard said under his breath when he felt far enough away from the others to speak in private. Still, Kale turned his ear in their direction. Sheppard cursed.

"He's my brother."

Sheppard gave her an angry look. "You can't base your trust on that, sorry. If it were just you and me, well, then, I suppose things would be different, but the lives of my team are at stake here, too. I don't want to go trusting someone with our location just because you share a father."

"I think it is a little late to worry about not disclosing your location," Thea growled, just now tugging her arm free of his grip. "Every Warrior in our land now knows of your escape—Kale has told me as much—and nearly every one of them will be searching high and low for us in order to earn favor with Rehina and the Mother. Many of my fellows are not above such things but Kale is; he always has been. You can trust me when I say that he will help us rather than hinder us."

Sheppard turned to look at the others and sighed. The two hounds (as Thea had called them) were sitting a meter in front of Rodney, watching him as he tried very hard to ignore them, which wasn't working very well. Teyla and Ford, on the other hand, were conversing in low tones and only stopped when they noticed Sheppard watching them. He frowned at this and turned back to Thea.

"Shit," was all he said at first. Running his hand over his face, he shook his head and sighed once again. "I guess we'll just have to trust him but I want it on the record that I am not happy about this."

"He's my brother. Nothing will happen."

"Famous last words, those."

"What?"

"Never mind."

Thea pursed her lips in annoyance but didn't say anything further. Sheppard could tell that she was fuming and it gave him an odd satisfaction that he wasn't sure he liked. Why should he be happy that this woman was obviously furious with him? Especially, he thought, when his life and the lives of his team were solely dependent on her, now. Clenching his hand into a fist, he felt the urge to punch something, which made him laugh bitterly. He already felt basically useless with his hand still recovering from the last time he had punched something; he didn't need to finish the deed and break every bone in his hand, which would probably result from punching the wall of the cavern.

With a sigh, Sheppard flexed his sore hand and turned to watch Thea as she left him to go back to her brother. The two Ortians spoke briefly before Kale turned to leave. Before he was out of sight, the two hounds left Rodney to run after their master; Rodney did not seem too upset by their departure.

Walking back to his team and Thea, Sheppard addressed the woman as if no quarrel had just happened.

"So what's the plan?"

"We are to eat with my brother's party before leaving them to continue on to de Sarnlande on our own." She turned to Sheppard as she said this as if waiting for him to challenge her decision.

And he almost did. They did not have the time to sit and rest. Atlantis needed them; Elizabeth needed him. He worked his mouth briefly, quite aware that everyone was looking at him and almost vetoed her decision had he not noticed Rodney's haggard condition. The scientist had gotten a lot tougher in the last year but he was still nowhere near in good enough shape to make the journey without another rest stop. So, with a sigh, Sheppard agreed.

"But we can't stop for too long," he amended. "Only long enough to eat and to catch our breath."

"I agree," Thea allowed. "I trust my brother but there is no telling what the villagers will say to the other Warrior."

"Can't you just wipe their memories, too?" Rodney asked. "I mean, we know you can do it since it's been done to us. It seems quite a simple solution if you ask me."

Sheppard shook his head in disbelief, quite surprised with how callous Rodney sometimes sounded. Thea, too, had this reaction.

"Few are so cruel as Rehina, Doctor. We do not wipe memories at a whim nor do we do it lightly. There are side affects, after all."

"Wh-at?" came Rodney's cracked reply. "Side affects? What side affects? I'm not going to go crazy am I? Atlantis can't afford to have me go crazy; I'm too valuable."

The three other members of the Atlantis team rolled their eyes. Thea, on the other hand, seemed to take him seriously.

"A few people have been known to lose all of their memories," was her reply. "And others have forgotten what species they are. It is actually quite hard to watch someone try to gnaw through the trunk of a tree."

Rodney was about to reply when he took a close look at Thea. "You're kidding. I don't believe you."

"I never kid, I can assure you of that," Thea said with a straight face. Sheppard, who had been watching her closely just shook his head.

"Funny, Thea."

She turned in his direction in all seriousness before cracking a smile. "I thought so."

"So, I'm not going to become a beaver?" Rodney asked.

Thea shook her head despite looking slightly confused. "Mind wipes are unethical, which is why I will not do it to one of the villagers, nor will Kale."

"But…" started Rodney.

"But in your case necessary. We cannot have the nature of our people be known to the Wraith." Thea turned from the group then and sighed. "I admit that it is because of this power that we have not been culled. The Warriors shield our people from the Wraith, which is why at least two can be found in every village and why the villages are so small. We do not fear the wild, as we would have outsiders believe, we fear discovery. The Wraith think this is a dead planet but they do return every hundred years to make sure no one has moved in or, indeed, has found a way to trick them. If the Wraith were to discover our secret, they would feed on each and every last one of us in one fell swoop just to be sure we could never go against them again. That is why we wiped your mind, Doctor."

"Oh," was all Rodney could say at first. "I see. Well…"

"Let's get some food," Sheppard interjected, stepping towards the mouth of the cavern. "Some rest will do us all a lot of good."

"I agree," came Teyla's voice. Sheppard looked back at her, a smile of appreciation touching his lips. "We have had a hard journey so far and still have a distance to go, if I am correct." She looked to Thea as she said this. The other woman did not meet her glance but nodded nonetheless.

"The Østervej is arduous to even the most seasoned Warrior but it is the quickest path to our destination. I believe that we will exit the final tunnel in the early evening and de Sarnlande and the edge of Himmelmark is not far from there. We will set up camp in a safe haven tonight and sleep without fear."

Thea's affirmation seemed to relax Rodney—in fact, his shoulder's loosened slightly as he sighed—but it did not have the same affect on the other three members of the Atlantis team. Each had seen enough horrors come out of the night to completely let their guard down in a strange land. Still, Sheppard nodded to Thea.

"Let's go."

"Jo. Kale is waiting for us."

---

_Atlantis – Control Tower_

"They've blocked us, ma'am," the technician said, glancing up at Elizabeth. She stood with her back to him, watching both the Gate and the men she had assembled to go after her missing party. Though heard, the technician's comment went unanswered. "Ma'am?"

At length, Elizabeth nodded and dropped her arms to her sides.

"I suspected they might have," she said after even longer. "Major Sheppard did not sound himself when he checked in and he would not go so long without contacting us again." A troubled sigh escaped her lips. "Are there any planets near enough to send a jumper team through?"

The technician turned to another screen just as three other people did the same. The control tower was silent for a long time before a woman at another panel spoke up.

"The nearest planet is a fifty-hour jumper ride away, ma'am."

Elizabeth's lips tightened. "You're sure there is no other planet in the vicinity?"

"There are other planets, ma'am, but none with Gates."

At that moment, Sergeant Bates mounted the final step and did not wait to draw closer before asking, "Is something wrong? My men are growing anxious."

"We've been blocked, Sergeant," came Elizabeth's clipped response. Turning to the technician again, she paused a moment. "Run a search for similar gate addresses."

"Ma'am?"

"Just do it."

The technician hesitated only for a moment before turning back to his computer screen to run the search.

In the time it took the computer to do its job, nobody spoke. Sergeant Bates stood silently by Elizabeth's side and, even when Beckett entered the room, presumably to speak with Elizabeth, his question died on his lips.

It took several long minutes before the technician looked up.

"I think we've got one."

"How far away?"

"On the same planet, ma'am."

"You're sure? Is it operational?"

"Yes to both," the technician said as he typed something into his computer. "Do you want me to dial?"

"Not yet but I need you to call up any files that might be in a database concerning that address and send them to my computer. I need to do some research before we go through the Gate." Elizabeth turned to Bates. "Tell your team to relax for now and then meet me in my office. We have things to discuss."

"Yes, ma'am," Bates said with a nod as he turned. Elizabeth simply nodded at his retreating back and closed her arms over her stomach. Turning to the Gate, she exhaled in a long sigh and slowly shook her head. What was going on?

---

_Orta – Eng dal, Østervej_

The food was now almost completely consumed and everyone gathered around the small fire was sitting back in a relaxed manner either thinking silently or conversing in low tones with someone else.

Though Sheppard was reclining near the small fire just like everyone else and chewing away slowly on a piece of jerky provided by the Ortian hunting party, he would not allow himself to relax completely. Every sense was tuned to the world around them even as his teammates conversed with the natives and each other. And even though he was watching the siblings closely, he was ready for anything that might come their way.

In the hour that they had spent with the hunting party, Sheppard had come to the conclusion that they reminded him of the native North Americans. It was not so much their colouring (for, indeed, the Ortians were a fair people) as their dress and as Kale and Thea stood conversing some distance away, their appearance was not unlike those warriors of old. Even now, Thea wore partial leggings of hide and a skirt that was split to her hip to allow ease of movement through as well as protection from thick underbrush. Though Kale wore full trousers, he, too, wore the soft leather boots of his half-sister that left almost no imprint in the soil they traveled across. Both looked as if they could disappear behind any tree and reappear halfway across the forest without being detected in the mean time. Unlike Thea's dreadlocks, Kale wore his hair in a pair of long braids, both decorated with wooden beads similar to those that adorned his sister.

The two Warriors were standing at a distance apart from the rest of the group, speaking in low tones. Their backs were to the fire and Thea stood with her legs wide and her arms closed over her chest. Her long blade remained strapped to her back though she was now carrying the bow and quiver full of arrows that Kale had offered to her not long after they sat with his party. The Ortian man had made the same offer to Sheppard and the other Atlantians and it was only Teyla who had accepted his offer—the men from Earth did not know how to use a bow (though Sheppard did admit to being a Boy Scout for a brief period in his youth and said that he had used the weapon…once).

"You know," Rodney said, pulling Sheppard out of his musings, "I think those two would be good in a fight against the Wraith. I mean, I've seen you take down a couple, Major, but just imagine what those two could do to them. I certainly would feel safe with them protecting me."

Sheppard turned a glance in Rodney's direction, hardly believing what he was hearing. "Are you suggesting that we hire them for your personal body guards?"

"Well, you certainly aren't assigning me any and I am one of the most important people on Atlantis, if not the most important."

Sheppard wasn't quite sure what to say but the expression on his face sure seemed to be enough. Rodney's smile fell away and gave way to the scientist's normal put-upon look.

"I wasn't being serious," Rodney tried. Sheppard sneered. "Oh, come on, you didn't take me seriously, did you?" Rodney laughed uncomfortably. "But some big powerful allies would still be nice."

"I think we blew our chance for that, McKay," Ford said.

"You think?"

Sheppard sighed in frustration but let the two men argue. Maybe if they got it out of their system now they would be quiet later. He knew he could count on Ford and his military training, but Rodney was always something of a wild card. Usually he did the right thing but when he didn't, the results tended to be pretty catastrophic.

After the food had all been consumed and Ford and Rodney had stopped arguing, those gathered around the fire fell silent, each caught up in his or her own thoughts. Sheppard's gaze wandered to the sky and noticed for the fist time that the fog was now gone and that a brilliantly blue sky had replaced it. Sheppard let a slight smile cross his lips, which only grew larger when Teyla looked in his direction. She smiled back despite their grim situation and turned back to Ford, who had asked her a question in low tones. Sheppard was just straightening up from his lounged position as if to address his team members, when he caught sight of Thea and Kale returning to the group. His question died before it even reached his lips as he stood and wiped off the back of his pants, squinting against the bright sun.

When the siblings were close enough to make out distinct features, Sheppard noticed that, aside from the new weapon Thea had accepted, a black stripe had been painted across her eyes from temple to temple and a red handprint surrounded by dots had been applied over her left shoulder blade. It not only proved to give her a menacing look, but the black made her very pale eyes stand out as beacons. Though he did not pay much mind to her brother, Sheppard noticed that he, too, had been painted; Kale's paint, however, covered the lower half of his face and the entirety of his neck. The members of the hunting party did not seem to notice the new appearance of the Warriors, but Sheppard's team sure did. They glanced back and forth between each other as if asking if trouble was fast approaching. Thea, however, quickly quelled these suspicions before they could be vocalized.

"We do not expect imminent trouble, so please do not be alarmed." Thea closed her eyes briefly before turning to look at Sheppard. "It is time to continue, however, for we still have something of a journey ahead of us before coming to de Sarnlande."

Sheppard did not answer right away. He had been caught off guard by Thea looking directly at him, a fact, he quickly realized, that greatly disturbed him. He was not sure why it should seem so strange, but after traveling with the woman, he had grown used to her unfocused glances and indirect eye contact. Frowning, he just nodded in response.

Rodney looked as if he was about to disagree but one look from Sheppard silenced the scientist. With a begrudging look, Rodney got to his feet, muttering under his breath and throwing Sheppard dirty looks as he got all of his gear together. Ford and Teyla were silent as they prepared to move out and Sheppard, having found his sunglasses, gave them one last curious look. Teyla met his gaze with something of a lifted brow that he ignored as he turned to Thea for direction.

The woman was standing just a few feet away from him, tying her hair out of her face and speaking in gentle tones with her brother. As she laughed, she turned in Sheppard's direction and smiled widely. Sheppard couldn't help but smile back, realizing for the first time just how pretty Thea could be when she was not leading them through dense fog or pulling men out of trees. Before he had only seen the trained warrior; now he saw the woman.

Shaking these thoughts from his mind, Sheppard nodded to indicate that they were ready to go. Thea did not respond right away. When she did, she tilted her chin in a nod as well and turned to her brother. The siblings took each other by the elbows and drew very close. Leaning even closer, they touched their foreheads and the tips of their noses together very lightly and locked gazes. Despite her height, Thea had to lift onto her toes to complete the farewell.

As he watched, Sheppard saw that in the time the two siblings stood together, Thea had closed her eyes and an expression of sorrow overcame her features. It was as if she knew something of her future. Sheppard glanced away when he saw this, not sure he should be watching such an intimate moment. He started to fumble through the different pockets on his vest (the only one Thea had managed to secure when she had freed them) as if intently looking for something. He was so distracted, in fact, that he practically jumped out of his skin when Thea laid one hand on his forearm.

"It is time to go, John," she said softly, a hint of sadness lingering in her voice. Though he wanted to ask what it was that she knew, Sheppard stayed his tongue.

"Just lead the way," he said.

Teyla and Ford once again exchanged glances, silently questioning the effect Thea was having on their leader as she started to lead them across the valley floor.


	9. Chapter 9

It took a long time to feel the inspiration flow so thank you to anyone who is waiting this fic out. I've managed to write the majority of three chapters (some short, some long) and the beginning of a fourth in the time I haven't been posting so that should last me a good while until I get another kick start. And, I suppose, that I should thank JKR and the HP movie for giving me the final push to finish those chapters I've been working on. Iee… I honestly didn't think that this fic would take me over a year to write. Thank you, thank you, thank you again. 

---

Chapter Nine 

It was not long after the small group had left Thea's brother and the Ortian hunting party. No one had spoken since leaving the fire and it was obvious that everyone was starting to feel the wear of the previous night's escape. Everyone, that is, except for Thea. The respite seemed to have done her quite a bit of good and she was just as fresh as ever. The Atlantis team, however, were starting to drag their feet and Sheppard wondered just how long this passage would go on.

They were still walking through the valley, though it was quickly coming to a close and Sheppard could not spot any obvious tunnel in the sheer stone wall that was towering over their heads. He watched Thea who was walking some ten paces ahead of them before turning to look at Ford.

"Do you see any way out of here?"

Ford did not speak right away but when he did he shook his head. "No, sir. There doesn't even appear to be a crack."

"I thought so."

Thea turned an ear towards the conversation but did not acknowledge the others beyond that. Since they had left the campfire, she had not spoken a single word. Her only instructions to them had been slight hand gestures, but even they were few and far between. In fact, Sheppard was starting to wonder if these gestures had been instructions to her followers or if they were gestures to a conversation she was apparently having with herself. The set of her brow implied that she was deep in thought and the quick glances around seemed to show that she was arguing this point or that inside her mind. At first, Sheppard had found it somewhat amusing despite their situation. Now, he was only worried that she was too involved with her own thoughts to be paying attention to where they were going.

Thea paused then and Sheppard drew to her side.

"Thea?"

"Yes?"

"Do you expect us to scale the wall to get out of here because, I've gotta tell you, there's no way McKay will make it out of here alive."

Rodney looked offended for a split second before he seemed to reconsider with a tilt of his head and conceded that point

"Wall…?" Thea said barely loud enough for Sheppard to catch. He shot her a sharp look just as she shook her head. A moment of silence followed as Thea's eyelids fluttered shut. She brought her hand up and pointed to a spot slightly to their right. "That is our path."

"I don't see anything; are you sure?"

"You must have faith, John," she said as she followed her own heading. Sheppard glanced over his shoulder to look at his team before following in her wake.

They were nearly close enough to the wall to touch it before Sheppard noticed a slight shadow at the point Thea had indicated. When he squinted and blocked the sun with his hand, Sheppard saw that there was indeed an opening in the wall, though it seemed to be cloaked in some fashion. The illusion held only a moment longer before giving way completely and revealing a narrow and deeply shadowed crack. Sheppard only lifted his brow when he saw it. He wasn't necessarily surprised to see that the passageway was cloaked, but he was confused. Thea seemed to pick up on this.

"It is believed that this valley was once a hunting bowl. Animals would be herded through the cavern we just left and brought here where other hunters would ambush them. More recently, during the Great War, enemy armies would be forced to retreat this way where, once again, they would be ambushed while our people hid in the cavern beyond. Or so our histories tell us. We have lost all records of those who came before us and must rely on an oral history that has been interrupted by Cullings."

"I thought you hadn't been Culled in a very long time," Teyla said.

Thea creased her brow. "The Wraith have terrorized our galaxy for much longer than we have been able to ward them off. You know more than any of your fellows how it is to live in the shadow of the Wraith."

"I do not recall telling you that I was of this galaxy."

Thea smiled as if Teyla had said something amusing and continued. "Once we found the power to ward off the Wraith, a few started to record what little history we knew, but that does not help us to recall what was lost with those the Wraith took. Our history is recent."

"Seven hundred years is a long time, Thea," Sheppard said as he studied the entrance.

"Yes, but not in a galaxy that is much, much older than that."

"You seem to know a lot for claiming to have little history." Sheppard seemed to be accusing her of something.

"We interact with other planets who have recorded their histories in a more reliable fashion than we have, John. Just because my people have a different tradition than others does not make us any less intelligent. We know as much about the Wraith as any other culture, but little about ourselves. That is what we have lost."

Sheppard just sort of shrugged and no one spoke for a length after that.

"Shall we not continue?" Teyla eventually asked.

"I was just thinking the same thing," Sheppard replied, giving their guide a significant look.

"Yes, of course." Thea gave no excuse for the delay as she pressed on.

When he first stepped into the opening behind Thea, Sheppard expected the passageway to be quite long. Within a short distance, however, he exited into a very large cavern. Pausing mid-stride, Sheppard tilted his chin to take in as much as he could. The ceiling was cast in a deep shadow it was so far above his head and the opposite wall was at least five hundred feet in front of him, if not more. Whatever doubts he might have previously had about this being a place of safe harbor was instantly abandoned.

"Whoa," Rodney said as he stepped out of the narrow entrance passage. "I was about to have a claustrophobic meltdown but this place is huge!"

Sheppard looked at him over his shoulder. "Thanks for that, McKay."

"No, I'm serious. This place is really, really…where's that light coming from?" Forgetting what he was going to say about the size of the cavern, Rodney walked to the nearest source of the glow. Just as he leaned in closer to try and figure out where it was coming from, Sheppard was coming to his own realization that the light was not daylight in the least. As far as he could tell, there was no crack in the stone face behind him, nor was there one above their heads or on any visible surface.

"That's…different."

"But perfectly reasonable," McKay said as he straightened. "It appears as if there is a bioluminescent lichen growing on a good deal of the wall surface."

"Bioluminescent… You're not a biologist."

"So. It seems pretty obvious that that's what it is," Rodney said, pointing at the spot he had been inspecting. "I mean, what else could it be?"

Sheppard seemed to hesitate and looked as if he was going to say something about there being a rational explanation about light infiltration or something of the like. However, considering what he had seen in the last year and what he now understood about the Stargate Program, he was not completely resistant to an explanation like the one Rodney had given him. Still… "How did you even think of that as a feasible explanation before looking at the stuff?"

"It's just something you pick up…reading science fiction."

"I never would have guessed you would read something like Star Wars novels."

"I never said Star Wars, major."

"Star Wars, Star Trek it's all the…"

"Don't say that it's all the same because it's all very different."

Sheppard smirked and pointed at Rodney as he caught the other man in a fumble. Rodney frowned and looked about ready to stomp his foot in frustration.

"But for the record I did not say Star Wars. You did. Besides, it's all so incredibly unrealistic…"

"Then why are you so defensive about it?"

"And why would you say Star Wars in the first place unless you…"

"I'm reading _War and Peace_, thank you very much."

"No, you're failing _War and Peace_."

Sheppard was set to retort when Teyla placed a hand on his elbow to silence him.

"You will have quite enough time to argue once we return to Atlantis. For now, however."

The men sighed and backed off.

"I had a really good comeback, you know," Sheppard said to Rodney as they followed Thea side-by-side once she started across the vast cavern.

"I'm sure you did, just as you usually do. Have I ever commended you on your debate skills? You are really, quite skillful; win many rounds in high school?"

"No, I played baseball in high school."

"That's a shame. Really. Who knows what you could have accomplished if only you had managed to refine your fighting words. You might have actually come home with some merit."

"Mensa," Sheppard reminded.

"Genius," Rodney replied.

"Boys," Teyla said, unable to restrain herself any longer.

Ford just snickered.

Thea did not let the group linger for long before she started to move deeper into the cave. The pace she led them at was quite a bit slower than it had been in the valley. At this point in their journey, even Sheppard appreciated being given a chance to let sore muscles stretch and flex without having to worry about needing to break into a run at any given moment. Still, from what he could make out through the darkness, Thea seemed to be more alert and on edge in here than she ever had been outside the cavern, which made Sheppard curious. So curious, in fact, that he increased his stride in order to catch up to her.

"So," he started, "there aren't any critters in here, are there?"

"I do not believe there are any nests in our path for now," Thea said. Sheppard rose his brow, not actually having expected the answer he received.

"Are you kidding?" Sheppard lifted his gaze heavenward. As if this could not get any worse.

"No, major. There are animals that inhabit these caves, but we should not worry ourselves with them now. We have many obstacles to face before we have to face them."

Sheppard closed his eyes and sighed.

"I have faced them before and I know how to kill them so there is nothing to worry about. We will be fine."

Thea set her jaw and quickened her pace to take the lead once again. And as he watched her go, Sheppard had the unsettling feeling that Thea was trying to convince herself of the same.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N - This is the quickest I've gotten out multiple chapters so close together in a long, long time; probably since the days of _The Hunted_, actually. And there are more finished after this! I surprise myself, honestly. And with a full time internship, I'm not sure where I've found the time. Anyway, enjoy!

Read it? Review it! That's what makes the world go 'round.

--

_Chapter 10_

The pulsating light of the lichen was growing noticeably fainter the deeper they traveled into the cave. Thea, however, did not seem concerned as she picked her way through boulders and over rockslides, forced to pause often as the Atlantis team struggled to keep up. They had been moving constantly for nearly twenty hours now with little sustenance and few breaks. Even Sheppard, who often surprised even himself with his endurance, was starting to trip. Rodney was near collapse.

Sheppard grit his teeth as he slipped on some loose rock and cast a dark look on Thea, who had paused some meters ahead, waiting for them to catch up. She shrugged slightly as if stretching her back and shoulders and continued to look ahead, not even glancing back to see how close her companions were to catching up.

They had spent the better part of the day in this passageway and had already crossed a very deep chasm on a very narrow natural bridge and climbed over countless cave-ins, boulders, and short but steep inclines. On a number of occasions, Thea herded them into the middle of the path before disappearing into the shadows; a few of those times Sheppard was sure he felt the ground vibrate and each time Thea returned she did not speak of what she had done. He only had his imagination to rely on which, after awhile, was starting to create fantastic scenarios.

The last hour or so had been fairly obstacle-free and Sheppard began to hope that they were nearing the exit. There was certainly more light coming around the bend than there was elsewhere in the cave. But when they reached the corner, the group was faced with a very steep and rather tall face of stone barely five meters ahead of them.

And that is where they had been for the last ten minutes. At least, that's where the Atlantis team was; their guide had moved on, just as she had the entire time.

She was on top of the sharp incline, which, now that Sheppard had time to study it, resembled a sheer wall more than it did a climbable surface. He stood with his hands on his belt, eyeing it and not quite sure of how to proceed. There was little in the means of a way up except an excuse of a path that was crumbling in most places and a few cracks that only a skilled climber would be able to find purchase in. Thea had used the cracks and Sheppard had no doubt that Teyla would do so as well. He and Ford would be able to navigate the path easily enough, if not climb the wall directly, but Rodney was a different matter. Sheppard just wasn't sure if the scientist would be able to make it up the wall right now, if ever.

The conflict taking place inside Sheppard's mind was apparent on his face and he was only stopped by Ford's, "Sir?"

Sheppard cleared his throat and looked up at Thea, ignoring the young officer.

"Exactly how important is it that we make it to the Scabbed Lands today?"

"Imperative to your survival, I believe," she replied, tilting her head slightly as she spoke. "Few dare to navigate these tunnels after nightfall."

"How does that matter? There is not any light coming through the walls so I would imagine it to be quite similar conditions regardless of the time of day," Teyla said. "Doctor McKay is hardly in good enough condition to scale the wall right now, so I would have to argue in favor of remaining here until he is well rested enough. We all need rest."

Rodney's pitifully exhausted sounds of agreement went ignored as Thea stepped away from the party; when she stopped, they could only see the top of her head.

"Darkness is not all that comes when the sun falls. Many say these caverns are haunted by the Himmel children who were murdered here and by the Warriors who died at its mouth trying to protect them from the Skygge onslaught." She paused. "And even if the ghosts of the dead do not wander these passages, creatures certainly do. I would rather not have to face them."

"And if we physically cannot make it to the top?" Teyla insisted.

Thea turned then and returned to the edge. She seemed to glance in their direction, her expression as if she were daring them to challenge her. Then, without speaking a word of explanation, she extended her hand towards Rodney. The scientist let out a shout of surprise as he was suddenly jerked off his feet, fear crossing his features as a dozen terrible outcomes flashed through his mind. Rather than being thrown across the cavern, as he clearly expected, Rodney seemed to hover in place for a moment before slowly floating towards the top of the wall.

"This is not… I don't… Someone help… Oh," he said finally as Thea sat him down on the edge. Quickly scrambling to his feet, Rodney dusted off the seat of his pants and looked around, quite concerned about what had just happened to him.

"That was unpleasant," he said finally, giving Thea a hard stare. She tilted her head towards him and blinked her strange eyes, an equally stern expression coming to her pretty face.

"I do not approve of complaining about a situation for which there is only one outcome, Doctor. You were not going to exert the effort to climb the wall on your own accord so I thought it necessary to give you the assistance you so obviously needed." The smile that touched her lips was not a pleasant one. "Be grateful that I helped you rather than making you do it on your own. If I hadn't, we would have been fodder for the dark ones before you even summited. I will not let John Sheppard die here because of you."

Rodney furrowed his brow in anger, but did not fight back. He was too exhausted at this point in the journey to really care.

"Fine," he said, "Thank you."

Thea nodded.

In the meantime, the three other members of the Atlantis team had started their way up the wall. Though they had been at first surprised to see Rodney floating through the air, each was silently thankful that they would not have deal with getting him up the wall. Indeed, Sheppard and Ford were having a hard enough time themselves without having to worry about the scientist. Neither had done much climbing before now and by the time they made it to the top, their muscles were screaming. Teyla, on the other hand, seemed perfectly fine and Sheppard momentarily resented her as he put learning how scale sheer walls on his list of things to do.

Rubbing at his injured hand (the pain in which made all other pain pale in comparison), Sheppard took a ragged breath, filling his lungs with the stale air. As he stood there waiting for Thea to continue, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Thea, how long are the days on your planet?"

"Very long and the nights very short, at least for now; our winters bring nearly endless nights."

"I mean how many hours."

"Hours?" Thea repeated, not familiar with the word.

Sheppard pressed his lips together as he tried to come up with a way to explain the concept of hours. "Basically," he started, "at least where we come from, the day is separated into twenty-four equal parts from sunrise to sunrise."

She nodded slowly, internalizing what he said. After a moment of thought, she creased her brow. "Our sun touches twenty-two points in the sky as it moves across the horizon from sunrise to sunset. During the night it remains hidden for a little more than a quarter of that."

"So, twenty-eight hours?" He asked, calculating quickly.

"I suppose."

"Three hours to sunset then."

Thea tilted her head and gave Sheppard a curious look. "Why must you quantify the day? There is little enough time to make it the rest of the way before the sun falls below the horizon. We are over the physical crux and do not have a great distance to cover before reaching the mouth but we are in the most dangerous part of our journey yet."

Rodney closed his eyes and sighed; he was beyond distraught now and seemed strangely calm. Sheppard gave him a sidelong glance, concerned. This was not the Rodney he knew.

"What lies in our path that makes it so dangerous?" Teyla asked, watching Thea closely.

"The dark ones." Thea's muscles grew tense as she spoke of them and a tremble ran through her body. "They slumber during the daylight hours but start to wake in the twilight—soon. If our path were singular and straight we would nearly be able to see the mouth of the passage from here."

"But…" Sheppard continued for her.

"But there is a labyrinth ahead of us. One path of dozens is true; most lead to wolves."

Ford laughed. "We can take care of a couple of wolves, right, major?"

"I somehow doubt these are the Earthly variety, lieutenant."

The younger man seemed to shrug even though he did not make the gesture. Thea just turned and looked down the path they were to take. "I know the way out," she said, pointing down the path, "but the wolves do not inhabit the same nest season in and season out. I have not been through here in many years—they are likely not where they once were."

"And you don't know where they will be?" Teyla asked.

"The Mother does not touch them," she began, her voice haunted. "The Wolf-father murdered Her children and fled from her kingdom in the night. He learned how to hide from the Mother's touch in fear of Her wrath and has remained hidden since. Wolves do not wander into our territory but if we enter theirs, they hunt us down. Because the Wolf-father hid himself from the Mother, we as her children cannot sense his offspring, but they can track us anywhere."

"Why in the hell do you travel through his passage, then?" Sheppard asked, his voice rising as it took on a sarcastic tone. "A labyrinth in which most turns lead to certain doom? That's a little _too_ much for me."

Rodney, who had been silent up until then, held up his hand. "And big walking vampire bugs that suck the life out of you with their hands aren't 'too much' for you?"

But Sheppard didn't hear him; he was too busy pinching his upper arm. Rodney lifted a brow.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to wake myself up because this is one hell of a bad dream."

"I don't think I've ever actually seen someone do that in real life," Rodney said. Sheppard didn't appear to hear him.

The major persisted for a moment before growling the word "Fuck," and dropping his arms to his sides, his face distorting into a snarl. All eyes were on him at this point and he seemed to challenge them all before closing his own eyes and taking in a deep breath. There was silence as Sheppard took the time to gather himself. At length, he turned to Thea and frowned.

"You said you know the way out?"

She hesitated for a moment but her answer held no tone of doubt. "Yes."

"Major…" Teyla began to say, but was cut off by Sheppard when he put his hand up. Obviously he had found some balance point that he did not want disturbed right now.

"And these wolves…?"

"Stand as tall as a man when they so choose." She turned to face him fully, fear of the creatures still evident in her eyes even though her voice had returned to its normal strength. "We cannot feel them as we do the rest of the Mother's creatures, but sometimes we can sense their void." She did not offer any time for explanation. "We will make it to _de_ _Sarnlande_ unscathed. But we must go; it will be dark soon. Carefully now."

And she took the lead.

--

It was just when Sheppard was wondering if they would make it out of the caves scot-free (and therefore wondering when something terrible would happen) that it came.

No one heard it approach but when Thea stopped mid-stride, the colour suddenly draining from her face, they all knew she had managed to sense it.

"_Nedad!_" she cried. "_De ulv…"_

The words needed no translation; Sheppard and his team hit the ground just as something soared through the air at chest height. It had intended to knock them to the ground…whatever _it_ was. Sheppard turned as quickly as he could in his prone position to get a look at the creature that had come after them and was surprised to find Thea standing protectively over him. She was facing it, her cruel-looking sword in her hand, and Sheppard found that he had to look around her legs to see the thing.

To his surprise, the creature resembled, to a certain degree, the wolves he was used to from having grown up in a mountain community. It was big, though, and certainly much larger than any he had ever encountered near his parent's house. The fine hair that covered the wolf's body seemed to ripple and absorb light rather than reflect it, giving it the appearance that it had simply materialized out of the shadows surrounding them; very little of the lichen light seemed to actually touch it. In some places, it vanished all together.

The creature gnashed its long teeth at Thea as it leaned forward onto its long, hand-like paws and prepared to leap at the Warrior, the hair on the ridge of its back standing on end. Sheppard could see the shiver than ran through Thea's body and he suddenly understood why she was so afraid of these wolves. If she could truly feel all living things than this black hole of a creature must be the thing nightmares were made of. Even its eyes did not glint in the faint glow surrounding them.

"Thea…" He said, hauling himself to his feet, surprised that he wasn't mauled the moment he moved. The wolf did, however, look at him, hunger in its eyes.

"Yes, John?" The shiver carried to her voice.

"You have faced these before, right?" he asked under his breath as he withdrew his knife.

She hesitated. "Once." The wolf snarled. "It did not end well."

But the wolf did not wait for Sheppard's response. It snapped its jaws, spittle flying, and leaped at the two humans. Sheppard dove to his left and rolled to his feet, turning towards where his team had been lying just moments before. They weren't there. His heart pounded against his chest until he saw where they had relocated into a shallow recess. Ford unlocked the safety on his P-90 and Teyla held her knife but neither made any move beyond that to join the fight. Rodney was cowering behind them.

But the wolf had disappeared.

Clenching his jaw, Sheppard instantly noticed that Thea, too, was nowhere to be seen.

"Stay here," he told the others as he turned to retrace their steps deeper into the labyrinth. The small group had bypassed a narrow passageway not too long ago and Sheppard could only hope Thea had pursued the animal in that direction, otherwise he would be completely lost.

The first major junction that led him back into the labyrinth produced nothing, not even a hint of where Thea and the wolf might have gone. Glancing down both of the tunnels that opened before him and unable to remember which one they had come through, he chose the one to his right simply because it was a little darker than the other one. Holding his knife out before him and hoping upon hope that he had chosen the correct direction, Sheppard advanced.

There was no sound here and very little light to go by. His eyes quickly adjusted as well as they could, but the sharp turn to his right came as a surprise. He stopped there, unsure where the path would lead him since this was definitely not the way they had come. Cursing under his breath, Sheppard took a step forward and prayed that he was not about to step into a den full of wolves.

Much to his delight, however, the Warrior woman came into view the moment Sheppard turned the blind corner. She was standing with her back to him just outside a small side passage, an arrow nocked to her short bow. The wolf was nowhere in sight.

Sheppard paused momentarily to watch her. There was no indication as to whether or not she had sensed his presence while he stood there, but as soon as he approached she turned first an ear in his direction and then her entire body.

"He is in there," she said, indicating the narrow passage.

"I gathered that. Is he coming back out?"

"I would assume so."

Though she stood strong in front of him, the string of her bow taut and ready to release, there was still a slight shake to her voice.

Sheppard frowned; something wasn't right. "Have you ever actually killed one of these things? And don't lie to me again, 'cause this is a really bad time to try and be brave."

"I would not lie to you, John."

"But there is something you're not telling me."

She only moved enough to speak. "My master did most of the fighting the last time I encountered one. All of it, actually. I had only fourteen years at the time and it was my first journey through _de Østervej_. Neither of us felt the void nor did we know we were being stalked until it was upon us. He was too distracted…" She trailed off, abandoning that line, as her eyes became more unfocused than usual. "The first thing—and truthfully, one of the only things— that I remember is the terrible pain that came when _de_ _ulv_ tore into my side. I was quite unconscious during most of the battle for the loss of blood and quite sick for sometime afterwards for the venom."

"You mean to tell me that you have never actually _fought_ one of these?"

"I distinctly remember sticking my knife in its gut. My master said that I was instrumental to its death."

Sheppard ignored that point. "_And _they're venomous?"

Thea nodded once. "The only reason I am still alive is because the _skyggeulv_—the shadow wolf in your language, these creatures—is my spirit animal. Very few living things can withstand their venom besides those of their own kind and those children of the Mother whom the Wolf-father chooses to love above all else."

Sheppard knit his brow. "I thought you said that this wolf…father killed the Mother's children."

"Did I not also mention that his wife was Her eldest?"

"No, you failed to get to that in your little story," Sheppard said, his voice barely under control. "It might have helped."

Her eyes flashed in offence but her voice remained calm. "I do not understand why you are so angry, major. The nature of my spirit animal should be of no consequence to you and this is hardly a good time or place to have an argument of this kind. There is a good chance _de_ _skyggeulv_ is now gone."

"Good riddance," Sheppard muttered.

"It will seek out your fellows," Thea said, her shoulders suddenly stiff. Her eyelids fluttered as her eyes rolled back in her head. Sheppard expected her to faint and prepared himself to catch the tall woman. When she did not fall, however, and her eyes instead flew open, Sheppard's heart jumped into his throat.

"He has found another way out," she said. "And your friends—"

She was cut off by the rapid staccato of gunfire and the sounds of raised voices echoing back to them through the caverns.

With barely a glance at the woman, Sheppard took off, Thea on his heels. He did not pay attention to his surroundings and nearly took the wrong tunnel had it not been for Thea calling him in the right direction. He spun towards her voice, disoriented, and followed the woman down the correct path, the gunfire growing louder.

And then it stopped.

"Your weapons will hardly harm _de ulv_!" Thea called over her shoulder.

They were too late.

"Don't, don't, _don't_ tell me that!" Sheppard pushed himself harder, running as fast as he had ever run. The path had not seemed this long when he had gone searching for Thea…

The next bend brought them back to where they had left the party. When Sheppard did not see them, he nearly panicked, terrible fates flashing through his mind. The sheer amount of blood on the ground did not help, either.

"There," Thea said, her lips nearly brushing his ear. He followed the line of her finger and let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding. They were still alive and at the far end of the tunnel, but were precariously perched on a too-narrow outcropping of stone, two wolves now pacing the ground beneath them. The larger of the two was limping but, miraculously, seemed to be getting stronger with each pass of its prey.

"Why does she not use her arrows?" Thea asked, more of herself than of Sheppard.

He glanced at her, half lost in forming plans to save his team. "Sorry?"

"She should use the arrows Kale gave her."

Thea nocked an arrow of her own.

"What in the hell makes you think that _arrows_ will work better than _bullets_?"

Thea muttered, "bullets" unable to translate the word, as she aimed. "The arrows are poisoned."

"Oh."

_Twang…_

"And the poison is the only thing we know of that kills them."

The smaller of the two wolves yelped as the arrow went through its shoulder. It stood on its hind legs and looked at Thea but did not stay there for long as another arrow went straight through the same wolf's throat, dropping it instantly.

"I see."

Her fear of the creatures seemed to have left her even as the large wolf raised itself on its hind legs and sniffed the air. It was taller than Sheppard by nearly a foot and looked every inch the terrifying creature that had nearly killed their Warrior guide. As it stood there, the long toes that resembled fingers flexed slightly as if it were calculating something. Other than that it did not move and Sheppard found himself wondering why.

Thea drew an arrow from her quiver; the wolf still did not move. "Because they can heal rather rapidly, even a knife through the skull hardly stops them for long unless it has been dipped in poison."

"Crap."

She blinked and let loose a third arrow, but the wolf was ready for it. Ducking below the projectile that would have killed it, the wolf leaped towards Thea, covering a quarter of the distance in that one jump. As it came bounding towards her, Thea withdrew a long dagger from its sheath after throwing her bow aside and stood ready to face it, the fear that had previously been so apparent now gone in the adrenaline that caused her muscles to visibly shake. Sheppard fingered his gun before forgetting it and reaching for his knife once again.

"No!" Thea cried as she readied herself. "Your weapons are not poisoned as mine are."

Sheppard started to argue but Thea was quicker and shoved him out of the way with her strange powers.

"This is my fight, John. Do not get yourself killed—"

But that was as far as she got. In the next moment, Thea was ducking under the wolf as it covered the distance left between them in a single leap. As it sailed overhead, she pulled her head between her knees as it made a desperate attempt to snap her neck in two and failed. The wolf rounded on Thea the moment it landed and reared to its hind legs once again, turning an amber eye on its prey. Thea, too, was ready to face the creature even before it landed and held her dagger out in front of her, ready to strike when it came for her again. The wolf took a step forward and then another, watching the woman it closed the distance between them. When it stopped two meters in front of Thea without striking, Sheppard felt his breath catch in his throat. He was utterly helpless and hated it.

The wolf's howl filled the cavern with a terrible sound as stood over Thea and Sheppard could see the shiver that violently shook her body, the rush of adrenaline that had given her temporary courage gone. In that moment, she seemed to cower, terrified by the creature, and looked so weak that Sheppard just wanted to hold her and tell her that everything would be okay. She seemed so like a child in her fear that when the wolf descended upon her, Sheppard expected to witness their guide's terrible death before dying himself.

But then Thea hurled herself into the wolf's abdomen, plunging her knife deep into its gut, her hand nearly disappearing in the cavity she created. The wolf cried in pain and snapped at the woman who dove away from the creature's terrible jaws. As she flew through the air, propelled by her own strange gifts, she withdrew an arrow from her quiver and reached for the discarded bow as she skidded across the cavern floor on her back, leaving a trail of blood in her wake. Without even grimacing, Thea nocked and released the weapon as the wolf made a last ditch effort and bounded after her.

The arrow hit with such force as it went through the wolf's eye that it protruded out the back of its skull, killing the creature instantly. The body of the dead wolf, however, slammed into her as she covered her head and was thrown into the cavern wall from the force of the impact.

Neither Thea nor the wolf moved after that and a great silence descended.

It took nearly a minute for Sheppard to recover in the aftermath and when he was finally able to move, he ran over to Thea. She was trembling beneath the dead wolf, tears streaking her filthy face as she turned towards Sheppard. He offered his hand to help her stand but she hesitated before taking it.

"They're dead, Thea," he found himself saying.

She only blinked and took his outstretched hand in her own. By the time she was on her feet the only evidence that she had been crying were the trails on her cheeks.

"Thank you," she said quietly as she turned away from him to gather her weapons, still shaking from the encounter. Once she had fished her dagger out of the creature's gut, however, she seemed very much her usual self. There was even a slight smile on her lips as she turned back to Sheppard.

"I told you I could deal with them."

Sheppard looked incredulous. "But you were almost killed in the process."

"But I still killed them both. Few Warriors can claim that."

"Then why didn't you do that the first time?" Sheppard asked, pointing at the arrow that had gone clean through the wolf's skull. Thea's perfect aim cast a shadow of doubt on the theory he had been forming about her.

"Because I was terrified," she admitted without looking at him. She almost seemed embarrassed. "The last time I encountered the _skyggeulv_ I was nearly killed. I still bare the mangled scars left by their jaws and affected by their venom. I am far more skilled now than the child that I was and have faced many greater dangers without fear, but that does not mean that I do not remember how it feels to have half my torso torn off."

She turned from him then without giving him the chance to retort. Sheppard watched as she left his side to meet the other members of his team just as they were coming down from their place of refuge. From his vantage point, at least, she did not appear to have lost half of her torso to these creatures. Indeed, she appeared the perfect example of health and wholeness.

He shrugged away the thought. Her body was none of his concern, especially when she enraged him so.

It did not take him long to reach the rest of the group once he went to meet them. Ford, Teyla, and Rodney, though haggard in appearance, did not seem any worse off for the attack. The young lieutenant's eyes even flashed with excitement for having been able to do something other than walk.

"Are you okay, sir?" Ford asked, looking Sheppard up and down.

"No worse for wear," Sheppard replied, distracted by their guide. After placing a makeshift bandage across her skinned shoulders, Thea moved past the others to the smaller of the dead animals in order to remove the arrows. She replaced them in her quiver to be used again before walking back to the larger wolf and running her fingers through the fur after removing the arrow that had finally killed it. The ebony fur rippled faintly in the lichen light and Sheppard found himself wondering what she was doing. When she removed the long dagger from its sheath, however, and grabbed the animal by the dense fur around its neck, Sheppard clued in.

"Thea," he said as a put a hand on Rodney's shoulder to move him to the side. Rodney hardly made a sound of indignity. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Spilling the blood and taking the pelt," Thea said as she slid her dagger under the larger wolf's throat.

"No you're not," Sheppard said, closing his arms over his chest. "We're getting out of here before any more of those things show up and nearly kill you…us"

"Only her pups will show up looking for their mother," Thea said, indicating the other wolf. "This was the mating pair and they have chased all others out of their tunnels. None will dare approach."

"You can't possibly be considering taking two blood soaked hides with you," Sheppard continued, thinking it a sound argument.

Thea did not look up as she finished making her incisions and flipped the large wolf onto its stomach. Straddling the wolf's shoulders, Thea started to expertly peel the skin away from the animal's body. "Only the one; we do not skin the females, especially those with pups."

"But you feel fine killing them?"

She paused and when she spoke, her voice was quiet, "Would you rather I had let her feed on your fellows?"

Sheppard narrowed his eyes. "Of course not."

"Then let me take my prize of her mate."

There was silence after that. Thea continued to work at removing the skin of the dead wolf, determined to make it hers in spite of Sheppard at this point. At length, she started muttering to herself, the guttural intonation of her native language more obvious in the quiet tunnel. As she did so, Sheppard turned to watch her work, a scowl marring his features. This was wasting their time—_his_ time—and he simply did not understand why she needed to make such a barbaric display of success even after the magnificent display she made of its death. And how in the _hell_, he thought, were they going to sneak around with a stinking, dripping animal hide in tow?

That was it. Sheppard had had enough.

And as if she were sensing his thoughts (which, he figured, she probably had) Thea stood and gave one last pull on the skin she had been taking so much care with to remove; the hide from the legs and the head had already been separated from the animal so this last bit from the torso was all the remained. The skin separated from the muscle with possibly the most sickening sound Sheppard had ever heard, which was saying a lot. Thea, however, seemed perfectly unaffected while Rodney had lost what little food he had in his stomach.

"I assume you're done then?" Sheppard asked as Thea held the surprisingly compact hide tenderly against her stomach before tucking it into her satchel. It was almost as if the fight had not happened she was so serene.

"I am." She did not look at him. "And no more _skyggeulv_ will stand in our path; we shall enter _de Sarnlande_ soon."

"Good."

"Follow me."

And they did.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I meant to post this over a week ago but kept forgetting to send it to myself at work, which is hardly an excuse, but now my home internet is working again so I can post it from here... I hope you all enjoy it! 

And for the record, those of you who guessed it were right. A little cryptic? Yeah, I know.

--

_Chapter Eleven_

By the time they left the caverns, the sun had already dropped below the horizon. And despite having spent the majority of the day insisting they make it to the Scabbed Lands before night fell, Thea did not say a word except to direct them to a safe place near a small copse of trees by which they could set up camp. She then moved away from the group and disappeared into the darkness.

They did not build a fire that evening nor did they consume much of their food before settling down to sleep away the short night. Everybody was exhausted and welcomed the ground as an uneven bed even if their slumber would be short. And though he was just as weary and sore from their journey as the rest of his team, Sheppard insisted on a watch and volunteered to be first. Ford reluctantly agreed to be second and though Sheppard conceded to the younger man, he did not plan on waking him. The other three needed the rest more than he did and he would give it to them, even if it meant not sleeping himself.

Truth be told, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to sleep and actually relished the idea that he would have some time to mull over the events of the day without any interruptions. Especially now that Thea assured had him no one would reach them, or indeed look for them here, he allowed himself to breath easy. His guard was still up and he would not let himself relax until he was back on Atlantis, but for now he allowed himself to take a moment to simply be.

In his exploration around the immediate area of their camp, Sheppard had come to the very edge of the nearby cliff. When he looked over, he could not see the bottom of the chasm despite the bright moon overhead, but even that did not make him step back. John Sheppard was far from being nervous about heights, after all. Still, when a harsh wind came wiping up from below, Sheppard couldn't help but retreat slightly. The last thing that needed to happen right now was for him to be swept into the ravine.

As he continued on his way along the edge of the cliff, Sheppard became acutely aware of their guide standing on a peninsula cliff. She had let her hair out of its leather thong and allowed the wind to blow the little dreadlocks into her face and over her shoulders as she stood basking in the bright light of the first of two moons. She had removed the leather bodice she normally wore as well as her leggings and boots and now stood dressed only in her skirt and a thin shift that barely covered her torso. A large scar disfigured the left side of her abdomen from her hip to the underside of her rib cage that Sheppard could see from where he stood. Despite what she had said about her peculiar ability to fight off the wolf venom, Sheppard was surprised that she had not succumbed to her wounds after the attack—the damage looked as if it had been extensive and he found himself regretting his previous doubts about her sincerity.

Over the scar there seemed to be some sort of line work but the moon was nowhere near bright enough to make it out from his distance. Once again, Sheppard found himself wondering about things that should be none of his business. It came as a surprise when he realized that he wanted desperately to know her story.

He pushed the thought from his mind.

As she stood on the ledge, and even as she turned her head slightly, taking notice of Sheppard, it was obvious that she was not concerned with modestly and Sheppard could almost feel the heat rise in his cheeks. Not from the fact that she was barely clothed—that he had seen plenty of—but because he seemed to be witnessing some intimate religious ceremony. When she lifted her hand straight out before her and started to speak, he almost turned away, but found that he couldn't, even though he could only see her mouth work rather than hear her actual words. It was as if he was compelled by some higher power to continue watching this strange and fascinating woman. At length, Thea opened her hand and let the wind sweep plant material out of her palm. A smile crossed her lips as she steepled her fingers in prayer and held them to her chest.

Though she did not often speak of the doctrines she seemed to live by, Sheppard could tell that she had faith in this Mother figure of her people. Whenever she spoke of Her, Thea's words held the utmost love and reverence for her deity and Sheppard could not help but wonder what Thea was asking of Her now.

He was about to turn away when Thea turned an ear in his direction once more. He cursed under his breath and made to look as if he had not been watching her for the last ten minutes. When she signaled for him to join her on the peninsula, however, Sheppard could tell that she was not angry in the least. In fact, she seemed quite serene as she turned to gesture out over the Scabbed Lands once he drew to her side.

"A great battle befell these lands many generations ago," she said softly. "A border war between my people and the _Skygge_. No one side won but many lives were lost when the land suddenly opened beneath them all, swallowing most of the Warriors and soldiers from each side. Since then our civilizations have suffered; it was a great loss to all."

Thea turned her face towards the moon and allowed a smile to touch her lips. "We stand on the very edge of the _Himmelmarke_; all of the space between here and the horizon belongs to no one except the dead."

"Is that what you were doing," Sheppard asked, suddenly coming to a realization. "Honoring those who were killed here?"

"Yes and asking them for safe passage to the other side. These are unstable lands and we do not know why. It is believed that this is where the final days of the war against the Wraith were fought by those who left us the spires. Since then it has been the scene of many battles and border disputes, but none so terrible as that which swallowed our Warriors most recently. Since, it has become sacred to all peoples of this world and is not often traveled through. Some believe spirits roam the crevasses, feeding upon those who venture too deep. This was the same war that brought about the massacre of the women and children in _de Østervej_ and many believe that when the earth fell from beneath their feet, the Mother was punishing those _Skygge_ Warriors who murdered and those _Himmel_ who did not stop them. Ghosts wander this part of the world and for that, people fear it."

"Which is what makes it safe for us."

"Exactly, John."

For several minutes, they stood there in silence. Sheppard was watching the moon as it rose over the Scabbed Land while Thea seemed to be watching something on the horizon, though what it was Sheppard couldn't even begin to guess. At length, Sheppard turned to look at Thea. He was not studying her but he did watch as a smile crossed her lips.

"Do you hear that?" She asked, lifting her brow and motioning towards the crevasses with her chin. "The wind is singing. Some people believe it is how the spirits speak to us."

"Do you believe, Thea?"

She did not answer right away. When she did, her voice was soft. "At one point in my life, I did believe. Full heartedly. Now? I am not so sure. I have experienced a lot to make me doubt my faith in many things. I believe in the Mother and in the Gift She bestowed upon me, but the Wraith have made me doubt every other aspect of my life."

"I thought they didn't know your people existed?"

"They don't, but I spent several years training on another planet in my adolescence that was Culled twice a year. They only came to my city once, but we lost one of the students to them." Thea's voice grew rough as the memory overtook her. She wrapped her arms around herself against a sharp breeze that blew over them and she shivered, though if it was because of the wind or the memory, Sheppard could not even begin to guess. "Of course we knew that they fed on our life-blood but to feel a child die by their hands… I have been involved in many horrible things in my life both in wartime and in peace, but never something so terrible as that."

"Did you lose anyone else to the Wraith?"

"No. As soon as Jurik was dead, I left the others and killed the monster. I still have nightmares about it."

"About the boy?"

"About killing in cold-blood. It is the worst thing we can do."

Sheppard wanted to reach out and put a hand on Thea's shoulder but wasn't sure how she would take it. So, instead, he kept his hands to himself and cast a sympathetic gaze upon her.

"But he would have killed you all if you hadn't done anything. I've fought with enough of them to know that."

Thea shook her head. "He had left the house, John. He would not have found us."

"Oh."

Neither spoke for a while after that and the wind was the only noise. At length, Thea furrowed her brow.

"Since then I have wondered why we do not actively fight the Wraith. We have trained our entire lives to protect those who cannot protect themselves and despite the legends, Wraith are not hard to kill. We could easily go to our allies and offer our protection against the monsters, but Rehina and the Elders will not allow it." She took in a shaky breath. "I do not know how much longer I can sit idly by and just let the Wraith do as they will. There are innocents out there being fed upon like animals and we who have the power to stop them do nothing except hide behind our Portal, snubbing all those who come to us for help."

"You mean Rehina actually turns people away?"

"She fears our secret getting out. Other people know that we are Warriors and they do not need to know what we can do for us to help them. We are wasting the Mother's Gift, squandering it because our leaders do not care." Thea's words were heated and she now spoke as she never had about the Mother; Sheppard could tell that this was something that she truly and deeply cared about. "I am not the only one with this sentiment; many Warriors, _Himmel_ and _Skygge_ alike, feel that we should do more for the galaxy, especially now that they have awoken. We can fight them off and we can save all of those who come to us for help if we only banded together under a leader who was not a coward. Rehina's vision told of you and another who would lead the galaxy against the Wraith and if I could only get my people and the _Skygge_ to put aside their differences and face the Wraith head-on, I know, _I know_, we can be free of them once and for all. Children should not have to suffer the Wraith."

By this time, Sheppard had turned fully to Thea, his arms crossed in front of his chest as he studied her intently.

"Do you know who this other person is, Thea? Did Rehina share their identity with you?" Sheppard's question was gentle.

"I do."

"And would this person be willing to lead the people of this galaxy against the Wraith if they must?"

"I believe so," Thea said, turning her face away from Sheppard. "But with you to rally under it will not matter."

Sheppard did not pursue his curiosity and allowed silence to descend between the two of them. Thea turned her body towards the Scabbed Lands and in the moon light Sheppard could see that the line work formed the profile of a great wolf standing on its hind legs. It was only an outline of the ferocious creature they had encountered in the caves, a bold line leading from its open mouth to its gut where it ended in an arrow and Sheppard was once again reminded of Native American art. At that point, he could not help but wonder if Thea's people were the very ancient ancestors of that warrior culture his people had all but killed off. Her language was wrong, but ten thousand years was a very, very long time after all.

After a time without speaking, Thea closed her eyes and shifted as if she was going to turn her gaze towards him once more. She stopped mid-motion, however, and opened her mouth to speak, though it took her a moment to actually form words.

"You are curious about the tattoo," she said softly. "Otherwise you would not be looking at me so intently."

Sheppard shrugged as he looked away. "Among other things."

Thea was silent for a moment and seemed to be collecting her thoughts.

"Once it becomes clear what creature watches over a Warrior, they are marked appropriately. In my case the _skyggeulv_ made its presence known early and the ink was laid while the scar was still soft for there was no more appropriate place than where the Wolf-father had already laid claim to my body," she said without looking at him. "But that is not the thought that is occupying your mind."

Sheppard shook his head even though he knew she could not see the gesture but did not speak. He was not going to ask her outright for the fear of sounding like he was accusing her of something.

With a sigh, Thea lifted her chin and turned towards her companion.

"I am blind, John. We all are," Thea continued. "The Warriors, I mean."

"I suspected as much."

"Did you?"

"The first time you didn't make eye contact I thought that maybe your culture had some taboo about not looking directly into an outsider's eyes. But when you never seemed to catch our glances or even look at us, I started to think that maybe something was up. Meeting Rehina and Kale simply supported my suspicions." He was silent for a long moment before going on. "Can you see anything at all?"

"A little," Thea admitted. "Shapes mostly, and colours in the sunlight, but I have been trained from infancy to not depend on my eyes, so it takes more effort to look at something directly than it does to _see_ it using the Mother's Gift. I know what you look like, though." Thea drew very close to Sheppard, so close, in fact, that their noses almost touched. "But I have to be nearly this close to see you."

The two stood there at the edge of the cliff for a very long time without moving. Thea's eyes roamed Sheppard's face as if she was recording every last crease and hair, but neither spoke or, for that matter, hardly dared to breathe. Though Sheppard did not know where she was going with this, a few ideas crossed his mind and, under different circumstances, he found that he wouldn't have minded her proximity. He was about to take hold of her shoulders (though to do what, even he wasn't sure) when Thea stepped back and turned around.

"I am sorry," she said quietly. "I do not often look at people and have almost forgotten the subtleties of the human face."

Sheppard let out the breath he had been holding. "Don't…don't worry about it."

The two of them stood there for a long, silent moment. Sheppard found that he was searching the shadows of the cragged landscape before him, but for what? he didn't know. Answers perhaps, but he had no questions. He clenched his jaw and only turned to Thea when she started to speak. She didn't seem to get very far and closed her mouth before actually saying any words.

Nearly an hour passed before either of them spoke again. One of the planet's two moons was now high in the sky while the other dominated the horizon before them, flooding both Thea and Sheppard in its light. Rodney moaned in his sleep and threw one arm over his face to block out the sudden intrusion. Sheppard watched his friend until the scientist fell still once again. He then looked up at Thea who was looking at nothing in particular even though her gaze seemed to be fixed on the large moon before her. A slight smile touched her lips.

"When I was a girl I would sneak out of my foster mother's tent to watch the moons rise," she said suddenly. "I would climb to the top of the tallest fruit tree near the edge of the forest and just let the light bathe me. That was before my sight diminished to what it is now."

"So you were born with the ability to see? I thought you just said that you were trained from infancy…?"

Thea's stance shifted slightly as she turned a cheek towards Sheppard. "I could not see well, just better than I can now. Most children are born with the ability to see, John, and we only lose our sight when the Mother chooses to give us vision instead. Nobody knows why the children can see but we believe that to serve the Mother as we do, we must make sacrifices. Losing our sight is the first and greatest sacrifice we make. After that, there are things all must give up and before we become Warriors, we must make one final sacrifice that is personal and individual and between only us and the Mother." She paused and turned her face towards Sheppard. "I have only recently had doubts about mine."

He lifted his brow but did not ask what she meant by that. In fact, he found that he really didn't want to know. If it was between her and her Mother then it was certainly none of his business to ask her.

"What about the others," he asked at length. "Can all Warriors see to some degree?"

"No," she replied quickly. "Rehina is completely blind, though we sometimes suspect that she does not realize it and therefore believes herself great for being given both the Mother's Gift and the ability to see."

"That's big of her," Sheppard muttered. Thea turned on him.

"She was a great Warrior in her youth and only began to have delusions of grandeur when she began to see the future after her rise to the leader of our people. Though wrong, she believes she has the best interests of the _Himmel_ in mind with every decision she makes. She used to be a great woman. I may not agree with her and I may have lost my faith in her ability to lead us into the future, but she has done much to protect our people from the Wraith and from the _Skygge_ in her time as our leader."

Sheppard put his hands up in defense.

"I'm sorry," he said. Thea just nodded.

"You should sleep," she said suddenly. "I can watch over you and your companions while you rest."

"What about you?" Though resistant to the idea, Sheppard was beginning to feel the day's journey.

"I draw energy from all things that know the Mother's touch. I can go for days without sleeping if I take the time to draw that energy into me. You sleep; I can keep watch."

"I can't possibly…" He trailed off as Thea placed a hand on his cheek.

"You must, John. Regain your strength for the journey ahead. Nothing will come in the night to hunt you or harm you, so there is no danger in resting and every danger if you do not." She smiled. "You are a strong man, but bravado will be your death if you are not careful."

Sheppard frowned and looked as if he wanted to argue before nodding once, suddenly overcome with exhaustion.

"Good," she said quietly as he took his head between her hands and pressed her lips to his forehead. Though Sheppard felt somewhat insulted by the motherly gesture, he found at the same time that he invited the warmth that spread through his body and the pleasant feeling that he would sleep very well in the few short hours until dawn. Clasping her upper arm in his sore hand, Sheppard turned from the woman to join his companions in rest under the trees that marked their camp.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N – I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for putting up with my slightly more aggressive take on these characters. I'm mostly talking about the language I have little Sheppard boy use from time to time because I'm sure there are people out there who aren't too keen on that. What can I say? It makes him more realistic in my mind for some reason. And I really do like Teyla, so her being the antagonist of the protagonists is nothing personal; it just fits her role in this story. Anyway, I just wanted to say that. No apologies, though, just thanks.

--

_Chapter 12_

The sun was not even above the horizon when Thea moved among the sleeping members of the Atlantis team to wake them. She touched each gently on the shoulder, filling their minds with pleasant thoughts and giving them strength for the journey ahead. She did not, however, want them to know that she had brushed their thoughts, so she moved away as they began to stir as if hoping her distance would quell any suspicion. When they did not appear to take notice of her administrations, she allowed a smile to touch her lips.

It was Sheppard who stood first. He stretched and kneaded at a sore spot on his back, concluding that he must have slept on a rock, a root, or something else just as unpleasant. He was facing away from the Scabbed Lands as he went about waking up and didn't even think about turning around to look at the landscape until he decided to speak with Thea about what today would bring. He turned to where she was folding her _skyggeulv_ hide and stopped mid-stride, mesmerized by the sight.

The Scabbed Lands were infinite. They stretched north to south in a series of deep channeled canyons and long plateaus from the edge where he stood last night to the golden sunrise in the east. The channels themselves seemed impossibly long and there was no way to tell where they concluded; they simply disappeared into the curve of the planet. There was a light mist hanging over the Lands that, as it caught the light of the sun seemed to set them aflame.

Sheppard took in a breath. It was beautiful.

Stepping away from his waking companions, he walked past Thea to the place they had spoken last night to take in as much of it as he could. He was not looking for the spot with the best view, however, as it might have seemed to anyone who had seen his reaction. Instead, he was hoping to find the path they would take. It was a vain hope and Sheppard was perfectly aware of that, but the distress he felt about leaving Elizabeth in their greatest hour of need was starting to wear on him. He didn't want to think about what would happen if the Wraith came while he was still here. The possibility of Atlantis coming out alive was already slim enough, but if he, Rodney, Teyla, and Ford were trapped on this miserable planet when it came… He didn't even want to think about it.

His distress must have been apparent because it wasn't long before Thea joined him on the small peninsula cliff. The thought surfaced, as he saw her approach, about why she was the one he was always consulting. While it made sense they would speak on matters of the journey at hand, it was almost as if he just realized that he had hardly spoken with Teyla or any of the other members of his team since leaving their cave prison. Why did he trust this woman so much?

The query left, however, as quickly as it came and Sheppard found himself looking at the woman next to him while she looked at nothing at all.

"How long does it take to cross?" he asked, looking back at the channeled landscape.

"Two days."

"Maybe for your people, but we have Rodney…"

"I have taken that into account, John; it will take two days. If we do not stop we could be there by midday tomorrow, which is what I would prefer, but I assume you would like to rest for a sufficient amount of time tonight."

Sheppard snorted and Thea turned as if to look at him.

"If I didn't have to consider anyone else I would push on until we got there, but I don't think Rodney would be able to handle it." He looked across the shallow gap that separated him from his team, watching them as they prepared to leave. "He's a brilliant man but he doesn't do well with physical activity."

He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked at the ground, kicking a rock off the side of the cliff as he did so. After a moment, he started to chuckle; the sound was humorless. Thea frowned.

Glancing at her, he turned towards the rising sun. "A year ago the only thing I had to worry about was whether or not the night's storm had frozen up all my fuel lines. I wasn't in charge of anyone except myself and I had everything taken care of for me by other people. My biggest adventures were crossing the ice in the dark the first winter I was at McMurdo. It was miserable and boring, but it was kind of nice after Afghanistan."

Thea didn't say a word.

"I'm way out of my league," he said quietly to the dawn.

She put a hand on his arm and he looked at her.

"What is it about you that makes me say things I won't tell anyone else? Hell, I usually can't express…things and here I am gushing. I don't even know if I can trust you."

"You can trust me, John."

He was silent at first.

"I wish I could," he eventually said. "But I don't know you."

"I haven't anything to hide. You know my people's secret, you know that I am blind and that I fear the _skyggeulv_ above all else. I do not approve of Rehina even though I appreciate many of the things she has done for our people and I believe that something should be done to stop her. But you know all this. What else must I tell you to earn your trust?"

"Why are you saving us?"

Thea turned her strange eyes on Sheppard as if she were trying to study him despite her inability to do so. Her brow furrowed before she spoke. "Because you are the chosen one, John, as I have told you already."

"_Don't_ say that again," he hissed through clenched teeth. "I'm hardly cut out to head up Atlantis's military, let alone save an entire fucking galaxy from the Wraith. I'm only a major."

Which didn't mean a thing to Thea. She worked her jaw but didn't get the chance to speak.

"You have another reason and I'm going to find out what it is," Sheppard said, giving her a hard stare. Thea stepped back but held his gaze as best she could.

"I assure you that I do not."

And Sheppard couldn't help but agree.

--

The descent into the Scabbed Lands was steep, to say the least. Though they had taken the shallow recess that separated the Atlantis camp from the peninsula, it quickly gave way to a rather narrow path of switchbacks that criss-crossed its way down the cliff face. Thea led them in a single-file line towards the bottom and Sheppard, who had taken up the rear, found himself watching her carefully. It was not because of his suspicions of foul play but because he was amazed that she could navigate such a treacherous trail without being able to effectively use her eyes. Indeed, she was looking out at nothing at all. It was the expression she had set on her face that told Sheppard how much she had to concentrate in order to find sure footing.

From time to time, Rodney would look in the direction Thea seemed to be looking as if trying to catch what it was she saw. And even though the scientist was obviously agitated by the time they made it to the bottom of the cliff, Sheppard very much doubted he had discovered their guide's blindness. That knowledge wouldn't help Rodney in the least and Sheppard intended to keep him in the dark for as long as possible.

Glancing around the canyon floor, Sheppard was surprised at the amount of foliage that was thriving down here. While he had noticed it on the descent, it still came as a shock to see this much plant life so far below the surface of the planet. Granted, there was a lot of light that reached these depths, but he had imagined a wasteland when Thea first spoke of the Lands, not a nursery. Vines climbed the cliff walls and a moss-like growth covered the ground on which they stood. Small pink and white flowers grew in large clusters everywhere he looked and all sorts of other plant life went on for as far as the eye could see, which would have been a considerable distance if mist didn't obscure the canyon walls to either side of him. In the midst of it all, Sheppard suddenly felt insignificantly small.

While the Atlantis team was momentarily distracted with the canyon, Thea moved away from them and started gathering the leaves and stalks of several plants into the sling that held her wolf hide and a few provisions. Sheppard turned to watch her after taking in his surroundings.

"Medicinal herbs," she said when she felt Sheppard's scrutinizing gaze. "They help the skin to heal faster than it would on its own, among other things. I will make a tea when we rest."

"Sounds good," was all he had to say to that; he trusted her enough to not poison them. And then, "So, how are we going to go about getting to the other side? You don't expect us to climb up and down all these cliffs do you? because I've gotta tell you, that's going to take a hell of a lot longer than two days."

She continued gathering plant material. "There is a path on the floor."

"Excuse me?"

"A path. On the canyon floor."

"That's what I thought you said." He regarded her bandaged back for a moment. "Rather convenient, isn't it? A path right where we need it the most?"

"We find it useful, yes," Thea said, apparently without picking up on Sheppard's sarcasm. "But we did not build it. It was discovered after _de Sarnlande _collapsed during the Great War. Most believe that it was left to us by the Ancient Ones, though we cannot know for sure."

Sheppard chewed on his lower lip. This was certainly not the kind of adventure he had been expecting when he stepped through the Gate nearly a week ago, now. Though few of his missions seemed to go as planned since arriving on Atlantis, he had rarely been delayed by this much due to complications with the locals. He sighed and watched Thea for another minute.

"Shouldn't we get going," he asked. "I mean, having stuff to heal our wounds is all nice and well and good, but we really do need to get back to Atlantis sometime this century."

Thea stood and turned towards him. "You speak often of how important it is that you return to Atlantis as quickly as you can but you have yet to tell me why."

Sheppard's eyes widened. How _dare_ she. Considering she was always so cryptic about all of her reasons for taking them to safety, she had no right to accuse him of _that_. Sheppard was outraged but turned to consult his team with significant glances nonetheless.

Ford shrugged. "What harm could it do, sir, honestly?"

"I agree," Teyla said in a hushed voice. "Perhaps if she knows about Atlantis we can pick up our pace and return sooner than anticipated."

"Faster?" came Rodney's distressed response. The rest of the team only looked at him.

Thea had not moved since they started talking but had obviously been listening to the conversation. "Is there something that you have not been honest about, John?"

He pressed his lips together. On top of all of the stress about returning to Atlantis in time that Rodney claimed was making him 'wacko', he didn't need to deal with a smart-alecky psychic, especially one with the smug little smile she was now displaying. Sheppard frowned in response. He didn't care if she was a highly trained warrior woman (which was a lie considering he did care that she could very easily kill them all if she so chose) because she was really starting to piss him off at the moment.

"The thing is, Thea, the Wraith are practically on top of Atlantis as we speak. If we don't get back there soon the city will be destroyed and the entire expedition team will be stranded or worse. Only a fraction of us are military and I'm sure the half of those who aren't don't know how to fire a gun. I mean, Atlantis is going to be destroyed regardless, but I'd rather go down fighting with my men than inadvertently abandoning them by being trapped on some miserable planet halfway across the galaxy."

She was silent for a moment before saying, "I know."

"About what?"

"The Wraith. Rehina told me when she assigned me to you."

"So you've known this entire time?" he clipped.

"I have."

"I don't _believe_ this." Sheppard clenched his fist. "Why haven't you told me that you know about the Wraith coming to Atlantis?"

"I did not see how my knowledge of your distress was important. I am leading you to the _Skygge_ Portal as quickly as I can and dare with you in tow and I thought that would be enough. Obviously I was wrong." She pressed her lips together. "If not for Doctor McKay we would nearly be there."

"Don't blame this on my team."

"And do not blame this on me."

In all honesty, he didn't have a reason to be angry with her knowledge of the Atlantis situation. He wasn't even surprised she had been told; they did offer the information to Rehina freely, after all. It was more the fact that she had accused him of withholding critical information even though he had done the same to her. Still, he narrowed his eyes dangerously.

"I have sacrificed myself for you, John. What more would you have me do?"

Sheppard pinched the bridge of his nose, then, and closed his eyes. He was beyond frustrated at this point. "Just tell me again why we couldn't use your Stargate?"

"Because Rehina's guards would kill you. You may be the chosen one, but Rehina spoke of another—"

"So you've told me."

"And because there is another person who will save us from the Wraith, she has no qualms about ending your life if it means our secret will be safe."

The other members of his team watched this exchange silently. Rodney was too distressed to really care—he just wanted to go home. Teyla and Ford, on the other hand, would be on the verge of mutiny if they didn't depend on Thea's guidance so much. Teyla saw the conflict Sheppard was experiencing concerning their native guide and, while proud of him for resisting her and fighting her, she couldn't ignore the influence this strange woman seemed to have over him. He always gave in at the end and Teyla was sure Thea's ability to manipulate minds had something to do with it. The mere thought of Sheppard's mind being compromised in such a manner disconcerted her immeasurably. And even though Ford wasn't nearly as empathetic as Teyla was, he, too, could see what was going on between his CO and the Warrior.

But Sheppard didn't see the glances his team exchanged behind his back, nor did he respond to Thea right away. When he finally did, he repeated a question from the previous night, "Who is the other person, Thea? You?"

"They are of no consequence," Thea replied. "And if you want to get to the Portal faster, I suggest we continue on our way rather than stalling any longer. The path is easy but long."

"Then why not tell me who he is?" Sheppard shook his head. He was at his wits end with this woman.

"Because it makes no difference if you know," she said quietly, "so why burden you with that knowledge?"

Sheppard opened his mouth to respond but stopped; the result was an odd sort of grunt. She was right, he didn't need to know. All that mattered was getting back to Atlantis safely and in one piece. Nodding once, he remained silent.

With that silent approval, Thea turned away from them. Sheppard glanced over his shoulder at Teyla as if seeking her approval, which she would not give. The Athosian woman just shook her head after he had turned away to follow Thea, her disappointment in their leader evident on her pretty face.

--

And so they walked.

And walked.

The landscape changed continuously around them and almost every turn brought another breathtaking view of the expansive Scabbed Lands as it could be seen from the floor of the canyons. Mist hung in the distance well into the afternoon and it was only after the midday sun had come and gone that it finally dissipated.

The tea Thea promised them filled each member of the team with a pleasant warmth and Sheppard was free of pain for the first time since leaving Atlantis. He flexed his injured hand as they walked and held it up before his face, inspecting it. By mid-afternoon, Thea removed the cloth bandages that covered her skinned back and Sheppard was surprised to see that what should have been scabs, if even that, was covered in a thin growth of new skin. His own cuts, though not nearly that advanced, seemed to be healing faster than they would on their own and his bruises had almost completely disappeared. Perhaps, he thought, something good could come out of this botched mission if he could convince Thea to give Atlantis a supply of that herb. After many hours of silence between the two, his anger had lifted and left behind only the suspicion that she was hiding something rather important.

A little while later, Sheppard was chewing on a piece of jerky when Thea suddenly stopped in front of him. Deep in his own thoughts, he nearly ran into the woman and immediately cursed himself for not paying better attention to his surroundings. He knew better than to space off.

But he didn't have time to berate himself for long. The hair on the back of his neck stood up straight, causing him to drop the jerky and bring his weapon to bear. His body was filled with an all too familiar sensation that he couldn't believe in; not here, not on this planet. When Thea didn't stop him as she always had in the past, he knew something was very wrong. Maybe his instincts were right even though he prayed that they were not.

"What is it?" he hissed, almost fearing the answer.

It was Teyla who responded.

"_Wraith_."


	13. Chapter 13

A/N – So, writers block has set in concerning Chapter 15 through half of the last chapter so things might slow down a bit once again. School is also about to start up again as well and another writing class in waiting in the wings so that doesn't help much either. The class will help me write better, hopefully, but it won't help with getting this story out. So thank you to all those who are sticking with me and sorry this is taking so long to write.

--

_Chapter 13_

Sheppard lowered his gun in surprise and turned on Thea.

"I thought you said the Wraith didn't come here?" He was less asking her a question than he was accusing her of lying to them. Again. But it didn't take him long to realize that she was as stunned by the Wraith presence as he was. She had drawn no weapons and only stared at a spot beyond the high walls that enclosed them.

"I said they do not Cull my people," her voice was troubled, "not that they do not come."

"Oh, this is wonderful. Just great. Of all the things…" he paused and turned to look at Teyla. "Did you have any idea they were here?"

"I…no, major. Not really." She seemed flustered. "I felt cold like I often do when they are near, but it was different than any time before, so I could not know for certain."

"Why, why, _why_ didn't you tell me?" He could barely control his anger. "Even if you didn't know for sure you should've said something. These are the kinds of things I need to know. Good Lord… I don't need this stress."

Teyla couldn't speak at first, but when she found her voice she seemed to have recovered from her spell of confusion.

"Maybe," she hissed fiercely, "if you consulted with us a little more and with _her_ a little less I would be able to tell you these things. We are the ones you can trust, major, not her."

But Sheppard had turned to Ford and seemed to ignore Teyla's outburst. "Did you know about the Wraith, lieutenant?"

"Teyla might have mentioned something, sir."

"Yes or no." Sheppard's voice had taken a dangerous tone.

"Yes, sir."

Sheppard closed his eyes and sighed. It was obvious how disappointed he was with his team and when he spoke again, his voice was frighteningly calm.

"You say you're the ones I can trust but you can't even trust me with information as critical as the presence of Wraith. These are the kinds of things I need to know, especially now. Think, Teyla, please, because trust goes both ways."

Teyla snarled and gave Thea a dirty look. "I just assumed that _she_ would know."

"Don't," Sheppard said, holding up one finger to stop her. "Don't."

Teyla's eyes grew impossibly wide with anger and she turned to Ford for some help. The young officer, however, was staring at his feet. He was already in trouble for withholding information and he didn't want to add insubordination to that even if it meant leaving Teyla alone in the fight, sputtering. Not even Rodney came to her rescue.

"Look, major," she said once recovered. Sheppard gave her a warning look that she ignored. "I do not know exactly what she is doing to you, but that woman has you wrapped around her little finger. I suggest you find a way to unravel yourself before you become completely unable to make your own decisions."

"And I suggest you learn to appreciate what she's done for us," Sheppard said quietly, hoping that Thea could not hear them but knowing otherwise, "because she's done nothing but help us. Shit, Teyla, she got us out of that prison. If she hadn't, we would probably be farmers by now and unable help Atlantis, meaning that all of your people and all of my people would be dead. Would you have preferred that outcome?"

"Of course not! But we are your friends. She is not. I do not trust her."

"Neither do I, but we don't have a choice." He closed his arms over his chest and straightened to his full height before turning away and starting for Thea.

"Major!" Teyla tried.

"Don't you speak to me right now," he said with hardly a glance over his shoulder. He didn't see Ford put his hand on Teyla's shoulder in comfort or hear the words they exchanged once he turned his back.

Sheppard hated getting into arguments like that, especially with people he considered friends. He didn't have many of those right now and, if he kept this up, he would be left with even less. The trouble was he couldn't quite pin down what Teyla had said that made him so upset. He agreed that he should be consulting with his team more and that he shouldn't trust Thea as much as he did, but when Teyla had said it he couldn't hold back his anger. Maybe it was because she said out loud what he already knew. When his fears remained as thoughts floating around in his mind they seemed abstract somehow and when they were vocalized, he couldn't stand the sound of them. But when he looked at Thea, as he did now, his mind went blank and those fears left for another time.

"She is upset by the Wraith?" Thea asked calmly. She no longer seemed insecure or, for that matter, nervous about the Wraith as she had before the argument. Sheppard couldn't decide whether he should admire her or be suspicious of her.

"Something like that," he replied as he drew up to her side. Why did he trust her so? "But I don't want to talk about it."

Thea nodded.

"Do you know how close the Wraith is?" he asked, happy to be off the subject of Teyla, brief as their conversation concerning her had been.

"He is near."

"Just to one?"

"_Nej_. Five. I know their signatures well."

Sheppard furrowed his brow. "Why are they here?"

"I do not know," Thea said honestly, "but I believe they are the phantoms we fear. Led by a Warrior or not, when people travel this route there is a good chance they are never heard from again. Some believe they simply wandered off the path and got lost. Others, those who believe in superstitions, insist they were killed by the spirits of the Warriors who envy us for our life."

"That's morbid."

"It is, but I believe we have found out the truth." She paused. "I do not know which is more frightening."

Sheppard just nodded in response. Though certainly used to the Wraith showing up where they were least expected, he was nonetheless upset about encountering one here. He had already escaped having his memory wiped and having his throat ripped out on this excursion; he didn't need to add having his life sucked out of his chest to the list of activities. Indeed, it was probably the very last thing he wanted to have happen right now. That being the case, he had a feeling he would have to put his trust in Thea once again. And in all honesty, he was really starting to get sick of it. He liked her well enough despite their disagreements, but he didn't like having to depend on her. At least he knew how to deal with the Wraith.

"Where are they?" he asked.

"Not far, but not within earshot, I believe. I have little idea how well they hear."

Sheppard frowned. "Neither do we, really. I just figure they can hear everything. It gets me pretty far with not revealing my master plans to them if I just don't say anything around them. When I can help it, that is."

"So you think they can hear us now?" She turned her face to him. He scratched his chin.

"I'm not sure. Maybe but I don't know how close they are. Still, it would probably be best if we didn't say much more until we deal with the problem. Or it deals with us. Either way, we should probably plan on not saying much." It felt surprisingly good to finally be able to take charge of a situation rather than having it dealt with for him. Despite his fears about being too inexperienced to charge Atlantis's military contingent, he was a natural born leader, even if a little reckless. When forced into situations like this, he always knew what to do and when to do it. It was an inherent talent that often landed him in trouble with his superiors. His smile was tight. It was good to be the superior, now, despite his insecurities.

He turned to look over his shoulder, a scowl crossing his face as he caught Teyla's gaze. He looked past her, however, and nodded at Ford. The younger man returned the gesture and they moved out without further discussion.

Unlike when they had encountered the wolves only the day before, Thea seemed excited. This was what she had been training her entire life to do even though few of her people ever had the opportunity to do battle with the Wraith. She would spend a lifetime keeping the Skygge out of her territory and perhaps even take on a student of her own when she was older but those were not the things she built her life around. Nor did the other Warriors. Her purpose in this life was to keep the Wraith at bay. She had done it once before as a student and now she would get the chance to do it again as a Warrior.

Before long, Sheppard allowed Thea to take the lead simply for the fact that she would be able to tell them when they were getting close; the life signs detector was permanently on the fritz and showed only snow.

It was ten minutes before Thea slowed their pace. She touched Sheppard's shoulder and pointed and he darted up a narrow path on the cliff ahead of them, disappearing into the foliage. There was silence for some time after that—not even a bird song touched their ears—until Sheppard returned with news of their enemy.

"They've set up camp on the other side of the bend but there're only two, one male, one thug. It seems like they've had a fairly consistent supply of food even though it doesn't look like they've been around for long." He glanced at Thea. "You're sure there are five?"

"I am."

"Teyla?"

She looked surprised. "I sense more than one as well."

Sheppard frowned. "That would be one for each if we can find the other three."

"Sir?" That was Ford.

"What is it?" Sheppard looked where the younger man was looking. "Crap."

"I found the other three."

They were drones.

The two men started shooting without speaking another word, which got the attention of the two Wraith Sheppard had been spying on. So much for sneaking up on them, he thought as the three drones advanced. Aiming for the face—or lack there of, as the case may be—of one drone, he managed to kill it, but the other two did not want to die, riddled with bullets as they were.

Concerned that he would use up all of his ammo, Sheppard prayed that the tough old bastard he was now concentrating on would just die.

And he did.

"Ford!" He yelled above the P-90. The lieutenant glanced at him and quit firing when Sheppard drew a finger quickly across his neck. Taking the knife he had been given instead and positioning the gun out of his way, he advanced on the injured drone.

But Sheppard didn't wait for the outcome before turning back to the women and the scientist. He knew the younger officer would be fine. Rodney, on the other hand who had no gun and would have been killed if he even thought about hand-to-hand, had retreated to a safe distance while the women took care of the other two Wraith. Teyla had already disposed of hers, the final drone, with her borrowed dagger while Thea was taking on the male. Her cruel looking sword remained sheathed as she once again gripped the long dagger she had used to kill the _skyggeulv_.

The Wraith was a more than adequate opponent for her and Sheppard found that he was mildly impressed, especially considering her lack of sight. She seemed to be anticipating his every move, just as he was hers, and they danced across the mossy floor matching each other blow for blow. When she kicked at his chest, he grabbed her ankle and spun her away. Before she finished rolling, he lunged at her to finish the deed, but Thea was faster and jumped to her feet and out of his way. The male stood and turned her way, baring his teeth at her, and the only sound in the canyon besides the whistling wind was the _smack-smack-smack_ of leather on leather as they began again.

He had no weapon besides his hand.

Within minutes, both were bleeding; whether from scratches, cuts, or well aimed punches, it hardly mattered. Thea spun on the ball of her right foot to absorb a particularly powerful blow to her jaw and slashed out with her dagger as she came back around, catching the Wraith across the cheek. He tasted his own blood and smiled cruelly; Sheppard could see that he was enjoying himself thoroughly. He had not been challenged in a long time.

She jumped away from the male Wraith, then, and they began to circle each other, but only for a moment. Thea repositioned the dagger in her hand and seemed to be staring over the Wraith's shoulder as he sized her up, apparently calculating something. But when she did not do the same, it appeared to Sheppard as if the male wanted to find what she was looking behind him at but was not willing to turn away from Thea to do it. Perhaps her blindness had an advantage after all.

Thea's next step was towards the Wraith, as his was towards her. They were both smiling with anticipation and the Wraith started to hiss quietly as they advanced on each other.

Despite the impressive show Thea was putting on, Sheppard was starting to wonder if she was dragging it out on purpose. This was the opponent she had been trained to fight and even though the likelihood of her people encountering the Wraith was slim, she proved very adept at matching them head on. That didn't give her an excuse, however, to take longer than necessary to kill her enemy.

They took one more step towards each other and the Wraith hissed louder. Thea just narrowed her useless eyes in glee and suddenly shoved her free hand towards the male. He looked smug at first, confident that what she had attempted to do failed; he had fought a few of these people before and had always prevailed. His smile, however, quickly failed.

He couldn't breathe.

The Wraith scratched at his throat in momentary panic before launching himself once more at Thea. She ducked beneath him, releasing her hold on his throat as she did so, and he sailed over her head without causing her any harm. The Wraith coughed as he rolled to his knees, weakened by the momentary lack of oxygen, and spun to glare at the Warrior woman, death in his eyes. But he wasn't given the chance to recover. In one smooth motion as she turned back to face him, Thea closed the distance between them, drew her sword from its leather sheath and separated his head from his shoulders.

Silence descended on the canyon.

The Wraith body remained upright for a long time before it collapsed and Thea turned to the Atlantis team once it lay prone. She was covered in blood, both black and red, but did not seem fatigued. A smile even touched her lips.

It disappeared, however, as a shadow fell across them.

"Thank you for doing away with them, Thea," came a man's voice from above. The entire party turned that way except for Thea, who frowned. "It was becoming quite bothersome having them skulk around _de Sarnlande_ eating everybody up. We simply have not been able to send anyone down here to deal with it, though."

Sheppard looked at Thea and was surprised when she hardly blinked.

"I wondered if you would wait around until we were finished. As usual," was her response. She drew a cloth out of her satchel and wiped the Wraith blood from first her sword and then her dagger. "And it was nice of you to tell me about the Wraith."

"If you had known you would not have been surprised, which would have complicated things, if not compromised them all together. And you are so good at killing them that I could not possibly have interrupted a master at work in order to render assistance. Besides," the shadow went on, "you had more than enough help traveling with him."

"I am hardly a Master," she said, ignoring the reference to Sheppard. "I had only killed the one before."

"Which is one more than most of the Warriors on this planet." The man's voice took a patronizing tone. "You, my dear, are a Master even if Rehina does not recognize you as one."

Thea just snorted.

There was silence for a moment before the man said, "Which is the one you told of?"

Thea's gesture was noncommittal.

"And?"

"We must hurry before it is too late."

It took Sheppard the length of the conversation to find the speaker against the sun and when he did, he frowned. Thea hadn't mentioned that she was expecting someone and, from what he could tell, this someone was rather large. The vertical distance between them didn't help any except to make the man appear even more massive.

"Thea…" Sheppard said, still looking at the shadow.

"Yes, John?"

"What's going on?"

She turned towards him. "You wanted to know how we were going to get to the _Skygge_ Portal, _ja_?"

"Well, yeah, but…"

"This is how." She pointed at the man. "The _Skygge_ will bring us there."

"What the hell?"

"They are friends but this is not the place to discuss it. We are running out of time." She moved towards him as if to illustrate the point and held up a hand. With a wary look, he took a step away from her.

He narrowed his eyes. "What the hell is going on here?"

She just seemed to look at him and managed to hold his gaze before he turned away; the sensation was too eerie for him to handle at the moment.

"You have to trust me…" she trailed off, her hand still held out towards him.

"What are you doing…?"

"I am so sorry, John."

But before he could say or do anything in response, Thea was at his side. She looked sad and genuinely sorry as she placed her hand on the back of his neck; her touch was gentle as she placed her thumb and middle finger behind his ears and sent a jolt of electricity into his brain.

With a gasp, Sheppard collapsed and did not move after that.


	14. Chapter 14

_Chapter 14_

_Great._

That was all he had to say. Or think, rather.

At least they were above ground this time and had beds. Light streamed in through the spaces between wall panels and across him as he lay on his back looking at nothing in particular.

Sheppard had been staring at the ceiling for awhile, now, trying to figure out what was going on. His companions lay unconscious in beds around him and he had immediately noticed that Thea was not among them, a fact that did not actually surprise him considering she was the one who had incapacitated him. What did surprise him was that neither his wrists nor his ankles were bound. So far as he could tell, he was free to roam as he would.

"Who the hell is she?" he said out loud, mostly to hear the sound of his own voice.

The world outside was silent.

He wasn't sure how long he laid there before one of his teammates stirred. It was Teyla; she was laying to his right. She moaned at first, no doubt experiencing the same splitting headache Sheppard had when he first achieved consciousness. Next it would be the muscle spasms and then…Teyla's eyes opened. She blinked as if to force the world into focus before sitting bolt upright. Sheppard smiled sympathetically as she fought off nausea and sat up himself.

"Look, Teyla," he said before she could speak. "I'm sorry about the whole 'let's trust Thea' thing. Though, it seems kinda moot now, all things considered." He swept his arm in an all encompassing gesture.

"It is…okay," she said, slowly able to comprehend things. "Where are we?"

"It'd say it looks like a shack, but that could just be me."

"Yes, but where?"

Sheppard lifted his shoulders in an exaggerated shrug. "Your guess would be as good as mine. But from what went down before Thea did what she did, I'd say we're in enemy territory. Or what we thought was enemy territory. I'm just sort of confused, really."

"As am I."

"Do you think she planned this from the start?"

"I have no doubt that she did," Teyla said with a nod. "But I do not understand why. What good could we be to her enemy?"

Sheppard looked at the wall. "Leverage. Now they have something that Rehina wants."

"What do you mean?"

"I think Thea is planning a coup."

"She told you that?"

"Not in so many words, no. From what I understood, though, Rehina is the enemy and the Skygge are friends." He still stumbled over the foreign name but it was starting to come easier. "Like I said, I'm really confused. Politics suck."

Sheppard then told Teyla to the best of his ability what Thea had told him in the Scabbed Lands, which wasn't very much. He could barely remember her talking about how she believed that the Skygge and the Himmel should work together to defeat their common enemy, but hadn't really thought much about it at the time. It sounded too optimistic for him. After all, wouldn't all life be easier if everyone was able to put aside their differences at the drop of a hat? Sheppard was too jaded to give it much weight.

But he hadn't thought about a coup until he had said it. It fit Thea's sentiments precisely.

A lot of what he told Teyla came down to speculation in the end as to what, exactly, Thea hoped to accomplish after overthrowing Rehina and the Elders. She had mentioned the need for a strong leader but Sheppard couldn't be sure if she meant herself or someone else.

And he found, after reaching the extent of his knowledge that he didn't really care about who replaced Rehina. She was the reason they were on the run and as long as she lost power, Sheppard would be happy.

That didn't mean he fully supported Thea, however. He was still wary of her allegiances, especially where the fate of his team was concerned. Did she actually want to save them? or were they going to be used as pawns in her rebellion?

His head jerked suddenly to the side, his thoughts blurring and swirling and he found that he couldn't quite get a grip on what he had just been thinking about. It was almost as if someone had set off a flash-bang in his mind. His ears rang slightly and the world spun slowly as his brain tried to readjust to the sudden change.

"Major!" he heard Teyla say. She sounded far away.

When he opened his eyes a moment later—which was weird since he couldn't recall closing them—Teyla was kneeling before him, her hand on his forehead. She stepped back as his gaze focused on her.

Sheppard couldn't remember what had just happened.

"What is wrong with you?" Teyla whispered.

"What the hell are you talking about?" he said, suddenly and inexplicably angry.

Teyla lifted her brow.

"You have felt nothing? Not even now when you nearly passed out? We can all see the change in you and I do not believe it is from the stress of being unable to return to Atlantis. Stress would not induce this."

Sheppard's frown was deep.

"See what, Teyla?" His brow creased. "Stop being so damn cryptic and tell me what you mean."

"Since coming to this planet you have not been acting yourself. Sometimes I see the man I know and other times I feel like I am speaking with a stranger." She paused. "What has she done to you?"

"No one's done anything to me…" he trailed off. "Who are you talking about?"

"Thea."

"Don't start that again."

"She's right, John," came Thea's voice from the far side of the cabin. Sheppard and Teyla jumped to their feet and turned to look at her. There was fire in Sheppard's eye.

"What?" His voice took a frightening tone.

"But it is not I who has affected you." She was leaning against the door jamb and accompanied by two taller silhouettes on the other side of the door. "Rehina has burrowed her way into your mind and is trying to rot it from the inside out."

He narrowed his eyes, not sure what to think. "What?"

"She hopes to bring you to the point of absolute depression. She wants you to lose hope; to lose the will to live to ensure that you do not leave this planet. If you come to believe so totally that Atlantis is beyond hope, she believes that you will have no reason to return and it will give her the power she needs to wipe your mind. We cannot completely destroy a person's identity if they do not want to let it go." Her strange eyes flashed in the dim light. "But she does not know you, John, and even though I know little more, I can see that you would fight for your home even if there was no hope for survival. You are the kind of warrior we strive to be."

Sheppard's mood swung suddenly and he looked like he was going to blush. "Well, you don't have to say that."

He shook his head and Teyla took a step back.

"She is deep." Thea turned an ear towards Ford and Rodney where they remained asleep. "But she has not affected anyone else. Your fellows will be safe."

"Why not affect us all?" Teyla asked, her voice surprisingly calm for how tense she seemed.

"Because you love and trust John enough that if he losses hope, so would you all. Rehina believes that she does not need to exert the power to influence all if she can have the same outcome by affecting only him. Her mistake was thinking that I would not find her out."

Sheppard's head jerked again. He put a hand on his forehead and started to rub at his temples, sure they were going to explode.

"How long have you known that woman was in my head?" asked Sheppard, his tone more appropriate now. He wasn't quite sure if he would ever be able to understand the strange powers of Thea's people and the fact that they were being used against him like this was almost too weird to comprehend.

"_De __Østervej_," she said quietly, attempting to take Sheppard's gaze in her own—he looked away, "when you spoke of waking yourself from a dream. Mania manifests itself in many forms as the mind fights an intruding presence and that is when you first started to show severe signs of Rehina's influence. Extreme emotions and even greater shifts in mood are the clearest indication that something is wrong," she said, gesturing towards him. "General irritation is another, but I do not know you well enough to have known your anger was because of her."

Silence descended over the cabin. Thea and her companions were now within the walls and it quickly became obvious that they were not of her people. The two men were darker than Thea was and were lanky where her people were powerfully built. Their eyes, however, were just as light and strange as hers and just as blind.

Sheppard's thoughts suddenly grew hazy again and he staggered. The two women were there to support him as the world tilted and helped him sit on the nearest bed as his body refused to hold him up any longer.

"Rehina," Thea muttered. Teyla looked at her.

"What is going to happen to him?"

"I will attempt to get her out of his mind for now, but the rest is up to him. He must fight for his own survival and there is only so much I can do without causing further harm. I am afraid we have done too much already."

Sheppard's eyelids fluttered.

Laying him back, she leaned over his body and took his head in her hands, cradling it gently. Then, closing her own eyes, Thea took in a deep breath and pressed the heels of her palms into the major's temples. He cried out painfully and attempted to push her away as all the muscles in his body seemed to constrict and he arched off the bed.

"Restrain him, please," Thea said through clenched teeth.

Teyla was quick to react and held his wrists together as best as she could. Giving Thea a side-long glance, she said, "Is hurting him absolutely necessary?"

"That is Rehina attempting to do as much damage as she can before being forced out." Speaking seemed to be a struggle as her body jerked slightly. Still, her hold and concentration did not waver.

"But she will relinquish her hold?"

Sheppard had taken Teyla's wrists in his hands and was squeezing so hard that she could feel his heart race, its erratic beat pounding through his thumb and against her skin as he gripped at her. Her fingers started to go numb, but she was unwilling to let him go as if holding him was the only thing keeping him here with her. So she grit her teeth and willed blood into her tingling hands. It didn't work, of course, but there was little else she could do.

"Yes."

Thea gasped suddenly and released the major's head, stumbling backwards as she did so. One of the Skygge Warriors was there to catch her but Teyla did not look at them as she watched her leader.

It was over.

His body remained tense for only a moment longer before he fell limp, a sigh escaping his lips. Teyla continued to hold him even though he was no longer able to hold her and allowed a smile to touch her lips. He looked as peaceful as she had ever seen him.

Without letting him go, Teyla turned to look at Thea who was leaning heavily on the Skygge. Unlike Sheppard, her breathing was labored and the toll of the last several days finally showed itself. Her eyes looked at nothing on the ceiling.

"She is gone," she said with the slightest smile. "And he will be himself when he wakes, but we must hasten in our plans to make it to the Portal before Rehina renews her influence over him. I have put up barriers to keep her out and will instruct him how to keep them up once he wakes, but that is as all I can do."

Teyla nodded slowly. "You have done quite enough. Thank you."

Thea's smile failed. "I know you do not trust me, Teyla, and I cannot say that I blame you. There are certain things I have had to keep to myself, especially after I suspected Rehina's presence. Because of that I could not say what I would have liked to. She knew my loyalties were wavering and I believe she was using John to get to me as much as she was to get to you."

"You could have shared your allegiances a little earlier," Teyla said. She glanced at the Skygge Warrior, who said nothing.

Thea shook her head. "Not while Rehina was listening. She cannot know what I am doing otherwise it would all be for naught and a war will result. But everything will be explained when he wakes, I promise. For now I must rest and recover my strength before the deluge comes. As must you. I sincerely apologize for how I had to treat you in _de Sarnlande_ but I had to trick her. Please, I am sorry."

She inclined her head towards Teyla in something of a bow before leaving the small cabin; the two Skygge were on her heels, ready to support her should her step faulter again. The Athosian woman watched them leave and was mildly surprised to see they had left the door wide open.

Perhaps she could be trusted after all.

--

A/N – Some answers, mayhap?


	15. Chapter 15

A/N – So two months and one intense creative writing class later, I've found the ending to this chapter. I'm still not sure I'm totally satisfied, but it will have to do. I have more story to get to and you all don't deserve to sit around on your bums waiting because I am a perfectionist. You have waited long enough. And to those of you who have been waiting, thank you. I don't deserve reviewers like you. And without further adieu…

--

_Chapter 15_

Sheppard opened his eyes. The effort was exhausting and he immediately went back to sleep.

Sheppard opened his eyes again. This time his skull felt ready to split in two but he remained awake.

His head was cradled in Teyla's lap and he was looking at the underside of her chin, as awareness slowly followed consciousness. She was speaking to someone Sheppard couldn't see and when he concentrated, he realized that he could neither hear nor understand what she was saying. It was weird, he quickly decided, as he continued to watch her speak. And it was comfortable; he didn't want to move.

But then hearing returned in a roar of sound and he grunted.

Teyla glanced down at him and her mouth formed a perfect O as she lifted her hand from his shoulder.

"How do you feel, Major?" she asked gently.

He regarded her for a moment. "Like crap."

Her smile lit up her entire face and as he sat up, he said, "Since when does my crapiness become a good thing?"

"You are yourself again. Even after she left I could not tell if she had been lying to us or if she had truly helped you."

Sheppard furrowed his brow and glanced at Rodney and Ford who were sitting on bed the across from him.

"What?"

"Thea. Do you not remember?"

"No. The last thing I remember…" he trailed off and looked around. "Where the hell are we?"

All three of his teammates looked at him and then at each other.

"We are with Thea's allies," Teyla said slowly. "She brought us here from the Scabbed Lands once it was discovered that your mind had been compromised by Rehina."

Sheppard just stared at her.

"_What?_"

Teyla smiled lightly and launched into an explanation of what had taken place some hours ago. Ford and Rodney, who had only heard the story secondhand, helped out with conclusions they had reached while Sheppard had been unconscious but offered little but speculation to the conversation.

Much of what Teyla told him was about how she had been rightfully suspicious that something was wrong with him. Though her words were picked with care so as not to seem smug, Sheppard's frown deepened. It was less because Teyla was confirming how right she had been in their arguments as it was about how easily he had been compromised. He didn't like it in the least.

"So, Thea has allied with the Skygge," Sheppard said when Teyla finished.

"You are the one who told me of the coup, Major," Teyla said with a nod. Sheppard's lips tightened.

"I've gotta admit that I'm glad I was right about Thea," he said. It wasn't meant to be a jab at Teyla, but it came out that way. He didn't apologize.

Teyla frowned. "But she was still hiding something."

"Well, yeah, but from what you tell me, it was probably for the best if she was trying to keep it from Rehina. Like you said, we don't know how much she could…" he trailed off as he came to a sudden realization. "You say that I'm the one who suspected the coup?"

"Yes," Teyla said slowly.

"Which was before Thea got that woman out of my head." He involuntarily shivered. This mission had long passed the point of weirdness and was about to cross the line of obscure. Or surreal. Either word would adequately describe how Sheppard felt. "I think Rehina might know."

"What do you mean?"

"If she could hear what was going on and could get into my thoughts, then she probably would have picked that up. I may have inadvertently revealed Thea's plans." Sheppard's brow furrowed. "I don't like this. It's all too…"

"Weird?" Rodney said.

"Yeah. I feel like I'm in some sort of a movie 'cause this kind of thing doesn't happen in real life."

Rodney lifted his brow. "Seriously?"

Sheppard sighed. "I guess it makes sense in a universe that has the Wraith. Still…"

The conversation was interrupted when a long shadow fell across the floor. All four members of Sheppard's team looked up in time to see Thea approach. She was still flanked by the two Skygge and Sheppard found himself wondering why. Was she the leader? He somehow doubted it. Maybe they didn't trust her. That made more sense to him. Their guide was a brave and righteous woman who was obviously willing to fight for her beliefs but she did not seem like the kind of person who would organize a rebellion; she was more of a fighter than a leader, despite being their guide. There had to be someone else.

A smiled crossed her lips as she stepped over the threshold.

"You are awake, John. I trust you feel better?"

He shook his head slowly. "I don't know about better but my head feels less crowded."

"That is good. Rehina will not bother you again. I have made sure of that."

"Have you?"

She was quiet for a moment. "Yes, but you must be vigilant. She may attempt to repeat her efforts when she has had time to recover, but she will find it more difficult this time. No, I believe you will be fine. Your mind will take some time to heal, however. Clarity might be not come as it once did for a short while."

"That's not good news," Sheppard said. "I sort of need my head to be clear."

"Yes, but consider what could have happened."

That kept Sheppard quiet.

No one spoke for a length until Teyla said, "Why are you here?"

"It is time to discuss how you will leave us. I have already told you that the_Skygge_ Portal will be your point of departure, but it lies in the middle of the _Skygge_ village and will be tricky to reach at best. Walking into the village will not be difficult, but activating it will be. Come, my Master wishes to speak with you."

As he stood, Sheppard found that he needed to lean on Teyla in order to walk. Each step was easier than the last but every muscle in his body protested the movement. His legs were already tired by the time he made it to the other side of the door where he paused, not because of his fatigue but because of the sight. While lying on the cot, he assumed they were in a cabin on the ground; instead, they were some thirty feet in the air. Their building was built on the thick branch of a massive tree and was connected to three other buildings in a series of bridges and platforms.

Dizziness, unfortunately, was another side affect of his ordeal and Sheppard nearly pitched forward. It wasn't a familiar or a welcome feeling.

Luckily, he had not only Teyla but also the two other men and Thea there to catch him.

"You will find that your recovery is quick, John," Thea said as she took her hand from his chest.

Sheppard shot her a dirty look. "Quick as in minutes or quick as in days?"

"By the time the sun sets, you will be well enough to travel to the Portal."

"I guess I can accept that. Not that I have much of a choice," he grumbled as he straightened himself to the best of his ability. He patted Teyla apologetically on the shoulder but did not ask whether or not Ford or Rodney should be assisting him. He did not doubt her strength, but she was a small woman and he didn't want to crush her if he was suddenly unable to walk. "How much further?"

Thea pointed to the nearest building. "Not far."

"Okay," he said, gathering all the strength he could muster. "Let's get this over with."

Considering the trip to the door had nearly exhausted him, the trip to the other building practically killed him. Or so Sheppard was sure. He didn't care if he was being overly dramatic with himself as he sat down, he was not a happy man and would have gladly melted into the wood floor right at that moment.

He didn't get the chance. Within seconds of them sitting at a large round table the doors on the far side of the building opened and the leader of Thea's coup stepped into the room.

She hadn't been exaggerating when she said her Master had asked for them; it was Grare Linaris.

"_Goddag_, Major Sheppard," the Warrior said, inclining his head towards him.

"H-hi," Sheppard stuttered. He looked at Teyla who was just as stunned as he was.

"You are surprised."

Sheppard suppressed a laugh. "To say the least, yeah, I am. But at the same time, not really."

"What do you mean?"

Sheppard shrugged despite the tremendous effort the simple gesture took; fresh sweat broke out on his brow. "I wouldn't have been able to put a name to the leader of the rebellion if asked, but seeing you here makes sense. Don't ask me to explain because my brain might short-circuit with the effort."

Grare nodded. It was obvious he didn't exactly understand Sheppard, but moved on nonetheless.

"I'm sure your friend's have filled you in as to why Thea did what she did."

"As much as they could, yes. But why did you have to, you know, knock us out? It wasn't pleasant."

"I apologize for that," Grare said with a slight smile. He remained standing, his hands on the back of a chair, and was flanked, like Thea, with two Warriors. These were of the Himmel, however, evident by their light hair and broad shoulders. "We do not like incapacitating allies in such a manner but with Rehina suspected to be watching your every move we certainly could not reveal the location of our camp willingly and openly to her. She does not need your eyes to know where we led you so we had to do the one thing we know of to keep an intruder completely at bay."

Sheppard nodded and accepted the answer. It didn't make him any happier, but it was a good reason. He would have done the same.

He then blinked several times, each longer than the last. Grare tilted his head to the side and continued to stare blindly at the ceiling.

"You are still exhausted."

Sheppard snorted.

"I will try to make this brief," Grare said, sitting. The two Warriors stepped back to take their places near the door they had come through. Glancing over his shoulder, Sheppard noticed that the Skygge were at the other door. Thea was nowhere to be seen.

"Not too brief, though," Sheppard said, turning back to the other man. "We need to know exactly what you plan to do with us."

"Of course," Grare said. "I wouldn't imagine leaving anything out. You are important to us."

"Yeah, yeah," Sheppard said, looking away. "Just get on with it. I need to be back in Atlantis yesterday."

Grare's brow furrowed. "We do not have the ability to travel in time, Major."

"Never mind."

Grare frowned for a moment longer before speaking. He kept his promise to both inform Sheppard of everything he needed to know as well as keeping the discussion brief. It started to drag on, however, as Sheppard began to ask clarifying questions and even though he was hurting, his brain on the verge of shut down, he forced himself to concentrate. This was more important than his health. Elizabeth needed him healthy, yes, but he could recover once they returned.

Thea returned part way through their discussion and took a seat between the two men. She watched the wall opposite her, her head tilting this way and that as she listened to them. Sheppard took to watching her at one point and only turned away when she turned towards him. A smile touched her lips that quickly disappeared as he cleared his throat and asked Grare another question.

Some time later, Sheppard sat back in his chair with a sigh, watching Grare as he did so.

"It's a good plan," he said after a moment of silence.

"We have medicines that will briefly heal your pain," Grare said. "It will clear your mind and give you the strength that your injuries would otherwise take from you. All of your friends are welcome to it."

Teyla turned to look at Sheppard, who met her gaze. "We will be fine without it."

"My Warriors will come get you when it is time to leave."

Thea stood with Grare and did not turn to the Atlantis team until her leader had left the building.

"You need to rest, John. Come," she offered her hand to help him stand. He didn't take it.

"I feel better," he lied. Thea dropped her arm and narrowed her eyes. It seemed to take all of her concentration to actually look at him. Sheppard just turned away as her eyes caught his and walked away without the assistance of his friends. He was annoyed to watch them hover around him in case he fell and was more determined to make it back on his own just to spite them. Halfway across the bridge, however, he stumbled and fell into Teyla's waiting arms.

"You should not expend yourself so," Teyla said as she held him around the waist.

Sheppard frowned. "Just get me back." He straightened. "I hate this place."


	16. Chapter 16

A/N – A portion of this chapter was written in a post-wisdom tooth removal surgery, powerful painkiller delirium. It was a little hard to concentrate (you know "ooh, look at the pretty birds…") but I think I was able to get into John's head a little, which is never-ever a bad thing. Sometimes I would like to take up residence in there, or someplace nearby. That and thesis studio is all ready kicking my butt but this thing is so close to being done that I can taste it. And see it; the ending is almost completely written and has been for some time. And then it's time for the parody, which will hopefully be mostly complete before I post it to avoid an 18 month marathon like this. Enjoy!

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_Chapter 16_

The light of Orta's two moons shone weakly through the trees as they left the small rebel camp. Thea had woken them a little after twilight and it had taken them longer than they would have liked to get Sheppard down from the canopy hideout. He was feeling much better than he had when he woke up that morning, but even after the medicine Thea's allies had given him, Sheppard was still feeling woozy. The fact that it took him nearly an hour to descend from the tree house when it should have taken less than twenty minutes did not give him much confidence in his ability to do anything useful that night. And even in the dark, he could see the same doubt in the eyes of his companions.

Thea, however, did not seem to harbor the same doubt. It confused Sheppard. He didn't understand why those who knew him—those who had been through nearly everything with him since they had come to this galaxy—would not have the same confidence in him as this strange woman. It was a thought that had been plaguing him for awhile now and continued to as they walked through the dark trees.

Dawn's glow was just touching the far horizon when they reached the Skygge village. The forest here was thinner than back at the camp, the trees skinny but incredibly strong; far above their heads, the Skygge village spread from tree to tree. There were three layers of buildings connected by a series of sturdy walkways of wood and bridges of rope and plank. In the shadow of the early morning, it looked like a terrible maze and Sheppard wondered how far the village spread.

The Stargate itself sat in the center of an obsidian wheel and the DHD sat on the thickest of the spokes that radiated from its center. The glass-like stone reflected what little light there was and seemed like a shining beacon in some places while in others it reflected only the deepest of shadows. The entire village was built with this sacred place in the center and all of the buildings seemed to sit in reverence to the great object that had made their existence here possible. Just as the Himmel Gate seemed to be forgotten, the Skygge Gate seemed to be worshipped.

Sheppard concluded that the decision to build their village around the Stargate was either very brave or very stupid. Or both. Either way, the Wraith would have little trouble reaching the villagers if they were to come here. According to everything that he understood about this galaxy, this village should have been wiped out a millennia ago. But here it stood, large and obviously prospering.

It then occurred to him to ask, "You're sure this Gate works? I mean really sure, not just fairly sure."

"I am sure, John," Thea said. The wolf hide was fastened around her shoulders like a cape and she all but disappeared into the night as she moved from shadow to shadow. "One of the reasons my people have not been Culled in so long is because the Wraith have brought the Skygge to the point of extinction too many times to count. But they are a proud people and refuse to abandon their home. This is where a great city once stood that was utterly destroyed by the Wraith and nothing but the Portal remains of that civilization. They grew to hate my people for our protection at their expense just as my people have thought them idiotic for remaining in a village that is so often destroyed. That, sadly, is the root of our warring." Her voice was sad as she turned towards the Gate. "I must admit, though, that despite the allegiance that has been formed, it is a point we argue over often. I try to understand, but I cannot."

"It must have happened a really long time ago if there're two Gates."

Thea's head tilted to the side. It was a gesture Sheppard had come to associate with a shrug. "It no longer matters now that so many Wraith have awoken."

Sheppard didn't say anything. Now that the Gate was within sight, it was hard to concentrate on anything else. Atlantis was so close and he couldn't understand—through the murk of his mind—why she was hesitating. He took one step and then another towards the DHD. It was almost as if his body was moving on its own accord and it was only when Thea put a hand on his arm that he stopped and realized what he had been about to do. Cursing himself for being so out of control as to completely lose track of what his body was doing, Sheppard looked around to see if there was a reason beyond the obvious that Thea had stopped him.

It didn't take long; their Skygge escort suddenly appeared out of the shadows to speak with her. While his team exchanged looks, the Ortians conversed in low tones, glancing at his party as they did so, before the Skygge disappearing once again. Thea turned to Sheppard once her allies were gone.

"Rehina approaches with Warriors."

Sheppard's brow creased. "Will we be able to make it through the Gate before she gets here?"

Thea shook her head slowly. "No. They come swiftly."

"But it's right there!" Rodney said, pointing at the Gate. "Right there. Can't we just go through?"

"The Himmel Portal is open, Doctor McKay."

"Oh."

She nodded once. "Some of my fellows are there trying to shut it down without damaging it, and I will know the moment they succeed, but we must be patient."

"Patient! There are people coming here to kill us or wipe our minds or whatever the hell you people do to your prisoners. I, for one, would like to remember who I am. The last thing I can be right now is patient!"

"Rodney…" Sheppard said, looking at the man. Rodney's breathing was heavy, his eyes wide, and he looked to be on the brink of a full-blown panic attack. They didn't need that right now. "Is there anything you can do from here?"

"You mean like shut down a Stargate from the other side of a planet?"

"I doubt we're that far away."

Rodney gave him a patronizing look. "It doesn't matter, Major. Without the proper equipment that connects me to it, there is nothing I can do to help shut it down. We are stranded here until the other Gate closes and I don't think we have thirty-eight minutes to live so don't even think about asking. Besides, we don't know when they opened it so we have no way of knowing when it will close. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Rodney, I think I do." He rolled his eyes heavenward and turned to Thea. "Is she hell-bent on killing us?"

She furrowed her brow slightly. "She would have you alive but she is also mad and would rather you die than leave this planet."

"Right," Sheppard said as he checked the ammunition in his gun. His mind seemed to be clearing. Finally. "So how are we getting off this rock?"

Thea looked as if she was going to respond but thought better of it and closed her mouth. A moment later, she started again, "I do not know."

"Who knows if you don't?" Rodney asked. "I thought you had this all worked out."

"We did not expect them to open their Portal."

"We will figure something out," said Teyla before Rodney could say anything else. She laid a hand on his arm. He didn't look very comforted but patted her hand in response and turned away to just look at the large ring of the Stargate.

As silence befell the group, Sheppard began to study their surroundings. It was difficult considering the pre-dawn light but his eyes were as used to the night as they were going get and he had to be prepared for the onslaught no matter the conditions.

As his gaze wandered over Ford, he was happy to see the younger man doing the same, as was Teyla. Rodney and Thea were the only ones who did not seem to preparing for whatever was coming their way. Sheppard had no doubt that Rodney would be of little use if the conflict became a fight since he did not have a firearm. While, in the long run, Sheppard didn't regret having him on his team, the other man could sometimes get in the way. Now, Sheppard feared, was going to be one of those times.

Thea, on the other hand, had a far away look to her upon closer inspection and Sheppard found himself wondering what she was thinking about. From what he could tell, she was always prepared for a fight, be the opponent Wraith, enemy, or nightmare, she had always pulled through for them.

Would she hesitate, then, if it meant killing her own people?

Sheppard hoped it wouldn't come down to that but nothing about this experience had been taken in low gear and he highly doubted that the coming conflict would be anything different. This was a planet of extremes—from their punishments to their determination to make his life a living hell—and Sheppard could say with certainty that he would be glad to leave. Very little about this had been positive.

Thea's eyes then focused as well as they could on him.

"We should move to the Portal," she said. "Rehina is here."

Rodney looked around in a panic and it was with the assistance of Ford that he started to move. Sheppard followed in the wake of his team, Thea leading them, as they crept towards the Gate.

Though the thought had occurred to him some time ago, Sheppard started to wonder what would happen if the village was to wake. Would a torrent of fury come down on them for trespassing? or would the Skygge let them pass just to spite Rehina? He hoped they would not find out but feared they probably would.

They stopped between the Gate and the DHD. Ford immediately separated himself from the others in order to dial Atlantis when instructed and Thea turned to face the Gate.

The sky started to glow red as the sun rose higher and Sheppard turned that way. The forest gave way to a rolling plain to the east that disappeared into cragged mountains in the distance. It was in the few trees that separated the forest from the plain that the highest buildings were built and Sheppard wondered if the sun would raise right through the center of the Gate now that he studied its position. It certainly would explain some of the reverence paid to the object. He hoped, however, that he wouldn't still be here when the sun broke the horizon to see it.

Thea suddenly tensed at his side. He wasn't aware until that moment how close she was standing to him. He gripped his gun a little harder.

"Do not shoot," Thea whispered to him. He nodded but didn't make any promises. Despite the herbal tea they had given him, he was in no shape to fight hand-to-hand, especially with one of the Warriors. If it was between life or death, his gun would be used. Even if it meant waking everyone up.

The forest was silent. Wind did not stir the leaves above their heads nor did birds sing as they woke from the short night. It was as if the entire planet was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen.

The_twang_ of the bow was barely audible above the silence as the arrow slid through the space between Thea and Sheppard, separating one of her thin dreadlocks from her head. Sheppard doubted the shooter had missed his target.

"Rehina is afraid," Thea said with a smile. "She is not so cowardice as to kill us from afar."

Sheppard had a response on his lips when a small army stepped out of the shadows, led by their white-haired leader. Unlike the woman Sheppard had last met in the village, Rehina looked every bit the powerful Warrior she was. Fully attired in leather, her hair seemed to float around her shoulders as she gazed blindly at Sheppard and his small party.

"I can see why the prophets chose you, John," she said across the distance that separated them. "Few are able to evade us for so long."

"Having Thea on our side sort of helps," Sheppard responded.

Rehina snarled. "She was one of our best. Chosen from a young age to do great things."

"Your reign is over, Rehina," Thea said, interrupting. "I cannot let you continue to waste the lives of all our Warriors. We are trained to fight the Wraith, we dedicate our lives to an enemy we will probably never see and now that they are awoken, we have the power to fight them off. The Lanteans only want the same. They are with us in this fight and you will not see that. We will all perish because of you."

Rehina lifted her chin and was silent; Rodney was shivering at Sheppard's side.

"I am saving our people, Thea. You are the one who is endangering them by sending these people back to their home. They will tell others of us and the Wraith will come."

"The Wraith have already come. Skygge Warriors lost their lives saving their people. Why can we not do the same?"

The Elder's blind gaze pierced Sheppard's skull and he flinched away from her. Thea's protection was keeping Rehina at bay, but it hurt like hell. The pain stopped when she turned as if to look at her Warriors over her shoulder.

"Kill them."


	17. Chapter 17

A/N – Just so you know, this chapter has been the bane of my existence. All but the fight seen (which I was finally, finally, finally able to write last night) has been around for several chapters, i.e. a long effing time. Thanks once again to those who are sticking this out.

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Chapter 17

The bombardment didn't start right away. There was a long pause between Rehina's command and the first arrow that flew from the string of a bow. But when the first was released, the others quickly followed. The Atlantis team did not need Thea's warning of, "Get down!" to dive away from the arrows as they arched back towards the earth. She, on the other hand, took a step towards the army of Warriors.

The only arrow that touched the ground landed to the right of Sheppard's shoulder, close enough to tear through the patch of Velcro. He stared at the spot until blood started to ooze and cursed as he looked back towards their guide, his words catching in his throat. Thea was standing under the barrage, each arrow quivering as she held them in place. There were not many—Rehina's army was perhaps thirty strong—but after their journey of the last week and her effort to keep her leader at bay, Thea was tired, that much was clear. She stood with her shoulders just a little too straight, her chin just a little too high, as she faced the white haired woman.

Another thirty arrows flew off their strings, straight for Thea this time, but they too stopped in midair, trembling only feet away from Thea. It was a battle of wills between those who guided them and she who held them back.

"You can still take a different path, Rehina," Thea said, her voice strained. "You do not have to kill him."

"You know better than anyone else that there is another who can save us. We do not need him."

"The prophets spoke of the catalyst, Rehina. They told us that the one who woke them from their slumber would be the one who destroyed them once and for all. He will have help from another, true, but that person cannot do it alone. We need him."

Rehina snorted. "We taught you better than to take a prophet's tale literally. They speak to us and we must interpret what they see. He is not the final answer. You are frightened; that is the only reason you will not let him die. You would rather the galaxy know of our secret than see him killed. It is for the greater good than he dies. Remember your sacrifice."

"No," Thea said. She started to shake. Whether it was from exhaustion or anger, Sheppard could not tell. Nor did he care. All he could think about was why Thea was fighting so hard for him. He didn't understand it. He wasn't worth it. Life would go on without him if he were to die. At one point, he had almost looked forward to the end. Loosing his best friends to a war and then his wife to his own carelessness had produced a number of dark months and this lingering feeling of unworthiness. He didn't deserve to be so cared about.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Sheppard stood. He didn't draw his weapon and he didn't wipe his hands of dirt and debris. He only stood up from behind the Gate platform and stared at the army before him and the woman who was ready to die for him.

"Why me?" he asked.

"Because it has been foretold," Thea said. "I have told you many times that you are the one they spoke of."

"Did they say my name?"

"Well, no," she said with hesitation. The arrows inched closer. "Prophecies are not so specific."

"Precisely my point. This person could be any old chump."

"_He who wakes them ruins them._" Thea said. "Verbatim. We have no enemies like the Wraith."

"You know, a lot of people were around when the Wraith woke up. Who could say that it was just me?"

Rehina's blind gaze bored though his mind. "You are the one who killed the queen who woke the others. Perhaps your fellows were there, but you struck the final blow. It is no one else's fault but your own. And for that you deserve to die. Too many people have been fed upon by your carelessness." She stopped, a smile touching her lips. "We know that you are not of this galaxy, John. We know that you came here from somewhere else. You do not care about us, nor for the people you have unleashed such a terrible fate upon. I cannot let you tell of our secret, nor can I let you go unpunished for the things you have done. _He is the destroyer_."

Sheppard swallowed at the lump in his throat. Of all the crazy things he had seen and heard since coming to Pegasus, this one took the cake. A prophesy about him? Impossible. People couldn't look into the future. People couldn't throw things with their minds. Jedi were not real.

"God dammit," he muttered. "God _dammit!_ What the hell is your problem? All of you."

Rehina actually looked taken aback. The arrows inched closer to Thea.

"I don't see how you get off making the decisions about who gets to live and who gets to die. I woke them up, yes, I admit that, but it's not like I planned on making my life that much more difficult. I'm living in hell here. Don't you think I feel guilty for all of the lives I am now responsible for? I know this is my problem and I sure as hell don't need you on my back and in my head trying to kill me for something that happened. According to you their waking was foretold, so why the fuck are you so surprised and upset that they are swarming around out there? I won't tell people about your secret; I'm not that kind of a guy. You just have to trust me."

The sky was bright, now, the sun almost completely over the horizon. The shadow cast by the Gate formed a perfect ellipse around the DHD, and Sheppard stood at its center. He was dirty and bruised, his hair flat against his scalp, his clothing stained and torn. But there was a fire in his eyes that could not be matched by Rehina or her Warriors.

Stepping forward, Sheppard went to stand next to Thea.

"How's the other Gate doing?"

"It is still open," she said, trembling terribly now. "But it will soon collapse."

Sheppard didn't have a chance to respond. The Warrior to Rehina's right had drawn his blade and was now advancing towards them. Sheppard brought his gun to bear, but Thea put out a hand and lowered it.

"No, John."

Her trembling suddenly stopped as her eyes flew open. The arrows rotated and flew with deadly precision towards the Warrior, piercing him. He slumped to the ground, barely recognizable for the arrows and Sheppard's fears about Thea suddenly disappeared. She was committed to their safety.

Another Warrior stepped out from Rehina's army and came towards them, grinning. His eyes were almost white, mere shadow where there should have been iris and pupil. Like his dead companion, he had drawn his sword and was advancing towards Thea and the Lantean team, his long hair blowing in the breeze that blew in from the plain.

Thea lifted an arm, her palm facing up, and a dozen arrows lifted out of their quivers. They held for a moment, still in the blowing air, before they too flew towards the Warrior, striking him down before he could advance any further.

Rehina literally growled.

"Are you trying to prove a point?" she said. "Because killing your brothers only shows how far from your training you have strayed."

Thea's response was to draw her sword. The sound of iron against iron sang in the cold morning air and was answered with a chorus as a dozen of Rehina's Warriors did the same. Thea half-turned back toward Sheppard and smiled. She found no joy in killing those men and women she had trained with, but the rush of adrenaline that coursed through her veins prompted this perhaps inappropriate response. With a flip of her locked hair, she turned and covered the distance between the small army and herself in long strides. One of Rehina's Warriors broke rank and ran to meet Thea partway between the two groups, their swords ringing as they slid together.

Had either Warrior the ability to see, they would have been staring at each other over their crossed blades. As it was, their confrontation took place on a level that neither Sheppard nor his team could understand. The muscles in Thea's back strained as she pushed against her fellow and he pushed back against her. Their bodies began to quake before the force became too much and they jumped back from each other. Thea landed nimbly on her feet and brought her sword to a high guard as Rehina's man swept his sword in a grand gesture that none of his people could see; Sheppard was reminded of a matador.

Thea snorted, obviously aware of what he was doing, but stood her ground rather than taking up more arrows.

"I am surprised your flourishing has not gotten you killed, Horan," Thea said.

"It's only for your death, my dearest," he replied before covering the distance between them in two long strides. Thea parried his sword away to her right and followed with a kick to Horan's chest. Before she could get her foot away, however, he grabbed her ankle and flung her from him. Thea rolled as she hit the ground, and stood facing her opponent. He chuckled as she rushed back at him and brought his sword to middle guard, anticipating her move.

"Your weakness is that you always fight the same," he said as their swords clashed once more. Thea grinned and pushed herself away from him. They took two steps around each other before coming together once again, Thea thrusting to the left and Horan there to parry. "You have always followed our rules of engagement too well."

"Maybe that's why I always win," she said. Horan laughed.

"How do you figure?"

Thea drew her knife as the man continued to chuckle and threw it, cutting his laughter short.

"Because no one expects me to play dirty," she said as she withdrew her weapon from the dead man's throat.

There was silence before the entirety of Rehina's army ran to meet Thea where she stood over the dead Warrior. Half of them were thrown to the side as Thea held out a hand to stop them and half of the rest were killed with their own arrows. Those who remained standing and moving met Thea in a clash of weapons. She grunted as three large men bore down upon her, their form perfect as they tried to slice the smaller woman to pieces.

One fell to Sheppard's bullet, another fell to Thea's dagger, and the third slumped as Thea's sword removed his head from his shoulders.

But three more were there to replace those she felled, and three more once those men had also been killed. Thea ducked, and Thea parried. She pushed men and women away from her. She broke necks and sliced limbs from joints and by the time they were all dead, Thea was covered in her blood and their blood and Rehina was nowhere to be seen.

"_Coward!_" Thea shrieked into the forest. She stood on a pile of her dead brethren, her sword dripping red, an arrow through her left shoulder, the same limb hanging useless at her side. "Come back here and face me!_ Rehina!_ I will kill you."

She did not seem to care about the Skygge village around them nor about her own grave injuries. "Rehina!" She cried once more before stepping away from the pile of bodies. She made it two steps before collapsing to her knees, tears streaking her filthy face. Sheppard dropped his gun and ran to her side, kneeling and supporting her as her body refused to support itself. He held her as she wept, wiping blood, tears, and dirt from her eyes.

"Come with us," Sheppard said gently. "You're too injured to continue fighting and Rehina will only kill you if she comes back."

"No, she won't," Thea said, her eyes closed against her wounds and tears. "_She who befriends him saves him. He is the destroyer; she is the harbinger of peace._"

"You're the other person."

"Yes."

"Why didn't you say so before?"

"Because I did not need you saving me when you were the one who needed saving, John," she said quietly. She pushed herself away from his support and kneeled in the short grass, holding her left arm with her right. "Even if Rehina succeeded in killing you, she would not dare kill me. And even if you escape, I do not believe she could do it. She tells us to not take a prophet's words as truth, but she is a slave to them more than any other."

"Then why would she kill me?"

"Because you have lived up to your end. Even if you die, those whom you leave behind will avenge your death and destroy the Wraith in your name. They love you, John." She paused and began to wipe blood from her sword, her left arm once again hanging at her side. "But Rehina will not risk my death even though she seems to be trying so hard to kill me now. It is all a ploy to force you into doing something heroic, but do not do it on my expense. Prophesies are not accurate; the woman they spoke of could very well be Teyla, or any other woman who has befriended you."

"Than why do they believe it's you?"

"The prophecy was told at the hour of my birth. According to our leader of the time it was too much of a coincidence, so they made sure that I apprenticed with the best. And when I killed that Wraith as a child, it seemed to solidify my role in this galaxy as fact. I have been raised to believe that I am she, the one who is to bring peace to this galaxy, but it is unsettling even now. I have never wanted this, but now that the Wraith are awake and now that you are here, I have to wonder if I am who they think I am. The galaxy needs to be saved, but I cannot do it on my own. That is why I have spent so much effort in saving you."

"You're scared."

"A selfish reason, I know, but I cannot think of anything more daunting than saving a galaxy, especially when it has been foretold that I would."

"Come with us," Sheppard said again. "We have doctors, good ones."

"If I leave I will never be able to come back, at least not without help from my people, and we cannot communicate across a galaxy. No, my place is here, John. Our Healers are good and we have recruited the best to our cause. I will be in fighting form before long." She paused, then, and stiffened. "The village is alerted to our presence. You must go. Now."

"Dial it up, Ford!" Sheppard yelled as he pulled Thea to her feet and they stepped away from the Gate. "He will be able to, won't he?"

"Yes. My brother has gained control of the Himmel Portal." She was leaning heavily on his support and was barely able to swing her sword into its sheath.

Voices rose in the canopy and dark shadows started to dart from branch to branch.

"_Portet!_" cried one voice, as others hissed, "_Himmel!_"

"Go," Thea said, touching Sheppard's arm. "I will make sure they do not follow you."

Skygge arrows—cruel looking black things—started to rain down from the trees. The first slammed into Thea's shoulder, inches from where the Himmel arrow had pierced her. She fell backwards into Sheppard, gasping in pain. Her eyes rolled back into her head and as more arrows fell among them, Thea lost consciousness. Without thinking about what he was doing—or, indeed, the consequences that would come from his actions—Sheppard lifted her into his arms and sprinted into the shimmering puddle of the Stargate.


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: Okay. I feel like a terrible person. (excuses…) I thought I had this story in the bag the last time I posted but then I started to wrestle with my self about the ending and had to put it all aside as I prepared to graduate and start my post-college life in the Real World (paying bills, starting a job in the world of architecture, waking up ridiculously early every day…). In the end, the little sumo wrestler fighting for a longer ending won over the wrap-it-up-and-move-on sumo wrestler, which meant I had to come up with material I hadn't anticipated having to write. So _yay_ for a slightly longer story and _boo_ for having taken such a long time (almost a hiatus) to write it. Bleh. It's nice, though, to not write parody for a change. Comedy is tough.

--

_Chapter 18_

Sheppard had no words. This was not the homecoming he had anticipated. Yes, everybody was ecstatic to see the lost team return to the city. A few had even cheered when he first appeared out of the event horizon, but Sheppard wasn't paying attention to them.

Two dozen cruelly hewn black arrows lay scattered on the floor at his feet.

The woman who had saved them lay dying in his arms and his shaking muscles could barely hold her, let alone himself.

Dropping to his knees out of pure exhaustion, he continued to hold her simply because he didn't know what else to do. Her skin was blackened with the grime of the short battle and rivulets of blood were forming small puddles on the pristine floor of the Gate Room. No longer sure if it was only her blood, Sheppard just stared, sat back on his haunches, and laid Thea across his legs. He was too tired to do anything else.

"John!" came Elizabeth's voice from the murk of his mind. He looked up to see her running down the steps, not even sure he was really in Atlantis. Doctors were already flowing out of the surrounding corridors to attend to the wounded. "What happened?"

"Thea," Sheppard said, his voice rough. He felt like vomiting. "Where's Carson?"

"I'm right here, Major," said a voice to his right. A hand fell on his shoulder sending a wave of white hot pain crashing through his body; a moan escaped his lips. "Sorry."

"Forget about me, Doc. Help her. I'm fine."

Though he didn't see it, Beckett had already instructed his doctors to take Thea to the infirmary. In fact, they were stabilizing the arrows in her shoulder for transport, but Sheppard's vision had narrowed and dimmed so much he could barely see anything other than Thea's left ear. There was a patch of skin right where her hair began that was still clean; a small island of flesh in a sea of dirt and blood. If he focused there, the damage didn't seem so bad.

The skin around the arrowheads was sickly purple and practically boiling; Sheppard could see the flesh move if he concentrated hard enough. Before long, the musculature in her shoulder became visible beneath a thin layer of quickly degrading skin. Thea was on the verge of convulsions as the poison coursed through her veins, the muscles in her back twitching terribly against Sheppard's leg where his trousers were ripped open.

"I would beg to differ," Beckett said. It sounded as if he was trying to talk through a wall four rooms away. "These are some nasty arrows."

Sheppard furrowed his brow. If Beckett was so worried about Thea, than why wasn't he attending to her? Even Sheppard could see the havoc the Skygge and Himmel poison was wreaking to her body. He worked his jaw but all he could get out was, "What?"

The agony of Beckett's touch was almost too much to bear and Sheppard tried to pull away from the doctor. A firm grip stopped him.

"You do know you have an arrow clean through your shoulder, don't you, Major?"

Sheppard ran a dry tongue over drier lips. "Now I do."

"And most of the skin around the impact has burned off."

"Ow," Sheppard said even though he no longer had the presence of mind to perceive pain. Everything was starting to get even darker and he only noticed that Thea had been taken away when he gagged and retched up blood.

"Can you stand?"

"No," he admitted.

"Okay, we'll get you…" But Sheppard didn't hear what the doctor said next. He was aware of falling to his left and of hitting his head on the floor—the impact reverberated through his unconscious mind—but after that there was oblivion. It wasn't darkness, or lightness, or even nothingness. Sheppard was somewhere past nothing and was slowly approaching a state of nonexistence.

--

For the next week, Sheppard was in and out of a coma. He vaguely remembered seeing faces, but he was more surprised at being alive to commit anything to memory. The world as he knew it inside his mind was already more than he could handle, so concentrating on the world outside was out of the question. Healing took more energy than he had to give it.

There were voices out there, too. Some speaking to him, some speaking over him. Some, he was sure, that weren't even speaking at all. Mother, brother, father. A crazy old aunt, a girlfriend from college. Moments of his life were passing slowly in front of his eyes and though he was barely cognizant, he somehow knew it was a bad sign.

_Wake up, John_, someone said in the voice of his ex-best friend's younger sister. It was nice to hear her voice again.

Someone touched his hand.

Someone else touched his hair.

At one point, Sheppard was aware of an electric current shooting through his body. Twice. There was a lot of shouting and he seemed to remember tears, though he didn't know from whom. They were probably his own.

Silence.

Something in his throat made him gag, but when he reached for it, he couldn't get his arm to obey. No matter how much or loud he shouted at it or sent mental messages at it, it didn't move. Nothing moved. All he wanted was to move…

"Carson!?" came a familiar voice.

Sheppard blinked. It was really bright.

"Carson, I think he's waking up!" That was Elizabeth. It was the same voice as before. He tried to focus on her, which was hard, but things slowly started to clear.

"Eurgh," he groaned, trying to say her name. A hand fell on his chest.

"Shh," Elizabeth said with a smile. She pushed a piece of hair across his forehead. "The doctors say you're going to be just fine."

Sheppard grunted, which was tough considering the tube down his throat. He turned his head at the sound of someone approaching. It was Beckett, who was lifting his stethoscope from around his neck. When the cold instrument touched his chest, Sheppard would have hissed had he the ability to.

"You scared us for a couple of days, Major. Couldn't even breathe on your own. This will be uncomfortable," he said as he gave the breathing tube a good tug. Sheppard gagged but didn't vomit, which he took as a good sign. "You won't be needing that anymore. And might I say that poison was effective."

"Thea?" was his first word.

"Alive," Beckett said, his smile fading. "And we think we've finally flushed the poison out of her system. It took more transfusions than we can afford, but she's getting better by the day, now. She's just in for a long recovery."

"Poison?" was Sheppard's second word. "Me? How?" He couldn't remember.

"An arrow followed you through the Gate," Elizabeth explained. "It managed to slip through right before we shut it down. It was…terrible."

"I don't remember… The last thing I recall is…getting the crap out of that hellhole. And Thea."

"Aye, you probably won't remember a lot about what happened."

"Your heart stopped twice, John," Elizabeth said. "You came closer to dying than Thea did even though she was hit by more arrows."

Sheppard frowned. "But Thea's okay?" he insisted.

"She'll be fine," Beckett said. "Start worrying about yourself."

"Should I be worried?"

The doctor smiled. "Not in the least. I'm just saying that in general."

"Wha—" but he started to cough when his raw throat protested speaking. Elizabeth handed him a glass of water, which he gratefully accepted.

"What about the Wraith?" he said when he stopped.

"Thankfully, they seem to have taken a detour. We still have them on our scanners, but they've moved parallel to Atlantis rather than towards it. Beckett thinks you'll be able to make a full recovery before they show up." Elizabeth's smile was reassuring. Still, Sheppard was skeptical.

"That doesn't seem possible," he said.

Beckett's smile became excited. "Once we got the poison out of your blood, you both started to heal miraculously fast. I don't have an explanation for it. All I can say is that you—both of you—should be dead."

Sheppard studied him for a moment as he tried to retrieve a memory. "Tea," he said.

"Pardon?"

"Thea gave us a tea. She said it had…had," he paused, cursing his brain. "Medicine. It was a kind of medicine. Her people drink it everyday."

Beckett and Elizabeth exchanged glances and the doctor shrugged as he looked back at Sheppard. "That doesn't really explain your healing rate."

"If you saw the stuff in action, you'd disagree," Sheppard said. He could feel himself getting stronger, which was nice. "She skinned her back several days before we came home."

Beckett frowned. "I found no evidence of that."

"Just telling you what I saw." Sheppard shrugged. "But I'm only a pilot. I'll leave the medicine stuff to you to figure out. I'm hungry."

Elizabeth chuckled. "We'll find a nurse to get you something."

"A pretty one?"

Elizabeth's eyes narrowed as she smiled. "I'm not making any promises."

"I think I might also need a sponge bath."

"I'm not sure I want to subject one of the nurses to that."

Beckett nodded, a smile in his eyes. "Aye, not after the last time."

Sheppard's brow creased. "What?"

"Bye, John."

"Wait! What happened last time? Was I conscious? I think I would remember a sponge bath…"

But they had already walked away, though not before Elizabeth turned a wink over her shoulder. Sheppard frowned and leaned back in his pillows.

Stupid short hospital beds, he thought.

--

Over the next couple of days, Sheppard only got stronger. His friends spent most of their free time at his bed side, bringing him treats, telling him jokes and keeping him up to date about the Wraith situation. At one point, he even got Rodney to fluff up his pillows. Through the visits, however, Sheppard's eye was drawn to the curtain that hid Thea from view. Beckett told him every day that she was getting stronger, but she had yet to show any sign of waking up. Sheppard felt guilty for putting her in the situation she had ended up in and therefore figured he was at least a little responsible for her grave injuries even though there was no way he could have prevented any of them. As the member of a coup, she probably would have faced that battle eventually, but she wouldn't have stood it alone.

That night, Sheppard took the initiative to stand; he was tired of lying around in a bed all day and all night. So, when the night shift was out of sight, Sheppard pushed off his blankets and swung his legs over the side of the bed. The floor was cold under his bare feet, but that was the least of his worries. The last time several times he had walked to the toilet he had needed assistance, which nearly killed him and his pride. The poison had weakened him; two weeks in a hospital bed hadn't helped. Now, however, he was determined to make it on his own.

It took the support of a cane Beckett gave him and the apparatus that held his IV fluids to get him across the room to where Thea slept, but it was on his own nonetheless. A smile touched his lips. It faded, however, when he pushed the curtain aside and saw Thea for the first time since the Gate Room.

She looked better. That was about all he could say. Her hair was lank and her skin was pale but clean of grime. She was breathing on her own and Sheppard took that as good, but the extent of bandages that covered her shoulder, upper arm, and left breast was worrisome, as was the sling that bandaged her left arm to her stomach. His own bandages wrapped around his chest, true, but that was due to two broken ribs more than it was to the poisoned arrow.

He forced out a shaky sigh. Maybe she, too, had sustained more injuries than just the arrows. It was entirely possible considering she had killed more than twenty highly trained Warriors inside of fifteen minutes.

It wasn't long before his trek across the infirmary started to take effect on him and his legs started to shake. Thankfully, there was a chair next to the bed, as if someone had been sitting with her. Hopefully, Sheppard thought, she hasn't been alone.

He sat down and hooked the cane around the arm, watching the woman sleep as he did.

"I'm sorry," he said at length. She didn't respond. "I seem to have this talent for getting other people into trouble and…and… Well, I never mean to get people hurt, especially not those who believe in me as much as you do. I don't know where to begin thanking you for what you've sacrificed."

He chuckled lightly and played with his fingers. "You know, sometimes I feel like I was only ever able to talk to my ex when she was asleep, too. She hated it, especially when I woke her up." He sighed again. "I think it's a glitch."

Sheppard fell silent and listened to the beeping machines that told him Thea was alive. A couple of nurses on the other side of the infirmary were gossiping about the female dentist in hushed tones so as not to wake the three or four patients currently under their care, while a doctor turned the page of her romance, thoroughly engrossed in the plight of Eliza, the raven-haired gypsy, and her star-crossed lover, Captain Arman of the pirate ship _Avenger._ None of them had noticed his journey across the infirmary.

It was another fifteen minutes of near silence before Sheppard considered returning to bed. His eyelids were beginning to droop for lack of sleep and he knew that if he didn't get rest there was no way he would be ready to deal with the Wraith when they came for the city.

Sheppard stood with assistance from the cane and had just touched the curtains to push them out of his way, when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned slowly in time to see the fingers on Thea's left hand flex.

A quiet moan touched her lips.

"Thea?" Sheppard said, returning to her side. She blinked her useless eyes once.

"John?" Her voice was an imitation of itself. "Hvor er jeg? …Where am I?"

"Atlantis," he replied. It didn't occur to him to call for help. "I'm sorry."

He watched her lips repeat the city name as her eyelids closed. Neither moved for nearly a minute until Sheppard reached out and touched her forehead, sure she had fallen asleep again. But when a smile touched her lips and she moved into the gesture, he couldn't help but smile as well.

"Tak… Thank you," she said.

"But you didn't want to come here."

"Nor can I help my people dead." She turned away from his hand and seemed to be staring at the curtains surrounding her bed, though Sheppard knew better. "A decision was made. We cannot reverse it now. Men tak for det, John Sheppard. Fordi jeg er her og ikke død, skal jeg hjælpe mine folk en dag. Tak for det. Mange, mange tak for det."

"You're welcome. I think. Is that what you said?"

"Ja, John." She chewed on her lower lip. "You are injured as well."

"'Tis only a flesh wound."

"Hvad?"

Sheppard smiled and shook his head. "Nothing. Never mind. I think I might go back to bed. Do you need anything?"

"Nej tak," she said, speaking in her own language, her eyelids closing.

"Should I get one of the nurses?"

"Nej tak. Jeg skal vække imorgen. I am fine now."

"Good night," Sheppard said.

"God nat, John."


	19. Epilogue

_Epilogue_

The battle came and went.

Grodin was dead. Ford had gone rogue. Another Colonel killed by the Wraith.

Earth was back in their lives.

Sheppard could hardly believe everything that had happened in the last month. From being put back on active duty to the Wraith attack, it was as if the universe had consciously given him just enough time to get back to full fighting form before coming to pieces around him yet again. Afghanistan had happened right after the divorce, Atlantis too soon after Afghanistan. His life could be separated into big blocks of time that started with disaster and ended in being forced to heal too rapidly.

And now the Wraith had come too soon after Orta.

Thea had wanted to help Atlantis battle the Wraith; desperately so. These were the enemy she trained a lifetime to fight and kill. Back on her own planet she had proved herself a confident and effective fighter and Sheppard would have been happy to have her at his side, had she been deemed recovered.

Lingering affects of the poison still kept her in the infirmary at night and Sheppard could see how much it pained her to be told she would be leaving Atlantis with the other non-essential personnel.

"This isn't your fight," Sheppard had told her. It was the first time he had seen her react vehemently against anything. "You aren't well."

Her jaw clenched as she paced away from the window she was standing at. "This is my galaxy, John. These are the people I have sacrificed my life for. You cannot stop me from fighting."

"This time I can. Once you leave Atlantis your life will be back in your own hands, but for now I am responsible for you. But this isn't my decision. You haven't been cleared to fight, not by Elizabeth and not by the doctors."

Her eyes flashed. "You do not trust me?"

He shook his head. "I trust you, Thea. With my life. My team even trusts you, but you have to accept that you will not be allowed to fight. Protect yourself this time."

"_I_ do not matter."

"_You_ cannot save the galaxy dead. You said it yourself. And you can't fight in this condition. You know you can't. For God's sake, Thea, your arm is still in a sling. I would gladly fight with you, just not this time."

Thea's eyes met his in one of those rare moments when she demonstrated her vision beyond sight. This time, however, Sheppard held the eye contact and it was Thea who turned away first. Even that small exertion of power tired her and she knew he was right. She had known he was right from the moment the argument started, but that didn't mean she had to be happy.

And in the end, the argument was moot. Thea had traveled to the Alpha site with the civilians who were not needed during the fight. She had been given her weapons and, though she was still injured and easily exhausted, she was given permission to protect those she was with if the need arose. It didn't, but the trust that had been extended to her pleased Thea more than anyone could ever know.

It took another week after the newly promoted Lieutenant Colonel Sheppard and the rest of the Earth contingent returned to the city before Beckett, somewhat reluctantly, released Thea from his care. The residual affects of the poison still weakened her and, as she told Sheppard, she would have to train for weeks to recover her full strength. Perhaps months. Both her people and the Skygge were talented potion makers and, though it also meant having developed a certain natural defense against it, the poison was meant to wreak internal havoc.

There was a chance, she told them, that she would never fully recover.

"That's terrible," Elizabeth said.

"It is life," Thea replied. She seemed to be looking at the floor of the Gate Room where they all stood, saying their goodbyes. Thea had made the decision to leave Atlantis despite the protests of Elizabeth, Sheppard, and Beckett, who wanted to keep her around for further observation.

In fact, Sheppard was still trying to convince her to remain.

"Stay," he said. "I could use you on my team, especially now that Ford has run off."

Thea shook her head. "No, John, I have made my decision. I cannot stay here. There is no place for me."

"It's a big city."

"You will see what I mean one day soon." She took in a deep breath and turned as if to leave. Her recovering arm was still in a sling most of the time, on Beckett's insistence, but she looked every bit as formidable as the day they had met her. She wore clothes borrowed from the Athosians and boots given to her by the military, her _skyggeulv_ pelt hanging from one shoulder. A large pendant of artistic jade hung from her neck, an Athosian gift of appreciation.

Thea turned away from the Gate once more and back to Sheppard.

"Do you know what I sacrificed in order to become a Warrior?" she said as she searched his face to the best of her ability. "Companionship."

"That sounds lonely, Thea."

"It can be. I have had hounds and I have spent time around others, but I would never allow myself to grow close to anyone. When I was young, I figured love would just get in the way of the cause I was devoting my life to, be it romantic or otherwise. I have come to discover, as most Warriors do, that the sacrifice is yet another test. We are young when we pass from apprentice to Warrior and we are forced to make a decision that will affect the rest of our lives. Some are wise, others are not."

Sheppard shook his head. "Then why choose something so big?"

"Because if I died, no one would grieve my loss, not as a drifter. The prophesy implied that I would spend my life alone, so when I fought, it was for everyone, not for one and not just for my self. The galaxy is a big place to save and until I met you, I was selfless." Thea smiled, then, and laughed. "You're flustered."

"Did you just say what I think you said?"

"No, John," she said. "I have found a friend in you. It is something I have not allowed myself to have since advancing to this rank. I have broken ties with my childhood companions and I rarely speak to my brother. My parents thankfully passed before I made the sacrifice—neither were Warriors and I don't believe they would have understood." She paused. "I thought I had to live alone in order to save everyone. And now, well, now I have you to save and Atlantis to protect. It somehow makes the fight worth something."

She cupped John's cheek in one hand and kissed the other. "Thank you for giving me something to fight for. Farvel, min ven. We will meet again."

Sheppard was actually quite flustered. He didn't let on to the fact, but those who knew him could hear it in his voice. "So I guess I'll see you later."

She smiled over her shoulder just before disappearing into the puddle and Sheppard lifted his hand in a wave she couldn't see; a smile touched his face as the Stargate deactivated that nobody noticed. Rodney muttered "Kirk" behind him before walking off and Elizabeth and Teyla immediately began a discussion about the Athosians, leaving him on the Gate Room floor with only a handful of silent Marines.

The world around him was quickly returning to normal. The afternoon would be spent doing paperwork and tomorrow would bring another mission. His shoulder was still sore if he used it too much and the vast scar left behind by the poison and the smaller scar left by the arrow would fade a little over time, but that was nothing new. He was a soldier; he had more than his fair share of scars. He was used to it.

What he wasn't used to, however, was the affect he had on this galaxy. Back on Earth, he had been one of many. Here, he was it. Almost every decision he made had an effect on something or someone else and it was becoming tiring. He had the rank, now, to help lead Atlantis, but he still wasn't convinced he had the experience. Not yet. Maybe never.

Sheppard sighed and put his hands in his pockets. There, his right hand curled around well-worried _ulv _scrimshaw Thea had given him the night before. She wore it with four similar pieces around her neck—rib bones from the wolf that had nearly killed her as a child. The charm carved into it was too worn to read, but Thea told him it was a blessing from the Wolf Father to protect his beloved and those they loved.

"Thank you," she had said as they stood on a balcony overlooking the city, "for saving me from my self."

"You did most of the saving, Thea."

"Only because I was out to prove to Rehina that I could. She always treated me as if I was a fragile bauble, as if killing the Wraith as a child had never happened. She believed too much in my role and too little in yours and before you arrived, I was on a self-destructive path." She touched his hand then. "So thank you."

He hadn't said it then and had chosen to take her hand instead—an awkward gesture for him—but as he sat down on his bed and studied the pendant in his palm, Sheppard smiled.

"You're welcome, Thea."

--

--

--

A/N: And there it finally is: The End (though, there might be another one some day…)

And to all y'all out there in internet-land who read this, whether you left a review or not, thank you. Just knowing there is at least a handful of people who enjoy this makes it so much easier to write, even if it took for-frackin'-ever to compose a chapter (thanks architecture school…). It's definitely the next thing I need to work on. Once upon a high school eve I was able to produce a chapter a week. Maybe, maybe, I can reach that level of productivity again or at least something akin to it.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.


End file.
